Insomnia
by coldstone4815
Summary: "I never really liked my father that much. Maybe it was because that he was cold, and all I was used to was the heat of flames. When I came to the Overworld, I promised myself not to make any friends. Well, I failed myself in that promise. And he tried to kill you, all of you... This is why I shouldn't make friends. I'm sorry...I truly am..." With that, Jordan ended the letter.
1. Day 0

**Day 0**

**Time: 3:11 A.M.**

**Location: Jerry's tree**

CaptainSparkelz sat awake on the top of his jungle tree, blue eyes staring out over the landscape. It was currently around 3:00 in the morning. The blocky moon was high in the sky, twinkling stars splashed out in the night. His kingdom sat not far off from Jerry's Tree, lights shut off and villagers safely tucked in their beds, sleeping peacefully without hindrance.

Jordan sighed, wishing he was able to do the same. But thoughts raged and no matter how much his eyes wanted to close, he couldn't seem to keep them closed. He sighed again, rubbing his tired eyes with his hand.

The Usher-resembling Minecraftian had been awake for the past few nights, just like tonight. His friends were starting to worry, but he always said he was fine. And when they would stare at him, unconvinced, he blamed his sleeplessness on nightmares. After all, he was Jordan. And if there was a major problem, chances are that he would tell them. So tonight was just like any night, laying sleepless on the top of the tree, mulling over thoughts in his tired brain.

He had heard rumors that Seto was dead. That Sky had nearly turned full-on squid. That Team Crafted had actually trusted a squid. But he hadn't heard the actual truth, just whispers floating around his kingdom. He had ignored them incase anybody from Team Crafted found out he was snooping. For the past month or so, Jordan had kept a wide distance from many of his friends. Only whispers and rumors from the villagers were his outside contact. They said that all this stuff had happened a month ago, so most of the rumors were starting to run out of fuel.

So Jordan was sitting up above Jerry's memorial, thinking about the rumors as he stared into space. His glasses were still placed over his eyes, as well as the red cape still hanging from his shoulders. The wind blew, the bugs sung, the humans slept.

Just an ordinary night.

But he was wrong. So, terribly wrong. A danger lurked in the tree. It would stay hidden, keeping to the shadows and only coming out to bolt to a different hiding place. Jordan glanced around, getting the eerie feeling of being watched. He looked out in the distance, shrugging off the feeling. It was nothing new to him.

That's when he saw them.

A pair of white, cold eyes glared at the Minecraftian. Jordan broke out in a cold sweat. "No, no, no. Please not now..."

He stood, and started down the treacherous stairs to the main floor of the tree. He ran to his room, where Karry sat on a crafting table. The cat meowed, wondering what was wrong with her master. Gary was hanging on the ceiling, ears and nose twitching. The bat squeaked suddenly, spreading his wings and flapping into a corner further into the room.

Jordan turned to the door, only to come face-to-face with the dreaded white orbs. He gulped. "I- I thought I had another week. That was the deal, right?" He asked tentatively, not wanting to anger the deadly threat in front of him. All the stories, all the rumors and tales couldn't even compete with the real thing. No, the tales were a simple way of keeping children in bed at night. Those stories held nothing compared to the true monster that Herobrine was.

Herobrine had many names and descriptions. Murderer, stalker, demon, ghost, monster. They were simple words. They couldn't fully describe the soulless, immortal monster. The truth was hidden safely behind words in a story or book. He flinched when Herobrine spoke. "Come, we must be going now. You are incorrect, and you knew that tonight was the time."

He shook his head slowly and frowned. "N-no, I'm pretty sure I had another week... Besides, I haven't explained I would be going anywhere. I haven't even said goodbye yet... Please."

The demon glared at Jordan and sighed. He thought for a moment, then finally said "Fine, I will give you one week. Not two, not three. One. But you have to tell them exactly why you are leaving. And I expect you to tell the truth."

Jordan nodded with slumped shoulders, sighing. One week. One week to say goodbye to his friends. One week to be able to walk freely without those glowing eyes following him. One week to be normal. One week to explain...

To explain that he was this monster's son. Jordan couldn't have asked for a harder week in his life.

* * *

**And here's the sequel to _Animal_ that I promised! If you're reading this, and you haven't read _Animal_, I strongly suggest you go ad read that first. It would explain a lot. Unless you _want_ to be confused. That's fine, I can understand... So, a lot of you said you'd be following me onto this story-_Insomnia_. I couldn't have asked for better readers! :) That's it for now, peopleses. I'll have the second chapter posted in no more than a week. Read, review, and save the koalas!**

**And yes, this chapter is a bit short. I tried to make it longer, but it's still a bit too short for my taste. Oh well. At least it's out, right?**


	2. Day 1

**Day 1**

**Time: 9:10 A.M**

**Location: Sky's house**

Jordan glared at the door to Sky's home. He really didn't want to do this. He hated the idea of telling anyone what he was with all his being. The demi-god felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to glance at Ryan. His friend nodded at him, giving Jordan a slight shove towards the door.

"Come on, Jordan. They're going to find out sooner or later."

Ryan had known Jordan's little secret for three years now. It had revealed itself when Jordan had been mortally wounded in a survival games round. Jordan actually couldn't remember the battle very well; all he knew was that there was Ryan there, and he had been at the brink of death. If he had been any normal human, he would of been dead. It took days of rest and recuperation before he was back on his feet. Shortly after, Jordan had willingly explained who-or rather what- he was. At first, his friend hadn't believed him, but when Ryan saw that Jordan wasn't joking around, the truth settled in. And Ryan accepted his friend for what he was.

Jordan knocked on the door, pushing his glasses further over his eyes. When there wasn't an answer, he knocked again. This time louder. A crash and thud were heard from inside the house, along with a string of tired curses.

He shared a glance with Ryan before the door opened.

"Whadda ya want? I'm sleeping," Sky mumbled, pulling a T-shirt over his head.

"Sky, we need to talk to you," Jordan answered. Something in his tone made Sky pause. He brought them inside and sat down in a chair. The other two sat on the couch across from him.

"Alright, what is it?"

Jordan swallowed dryly, deciding that this had to be done sometime. Sooner rather than later, he guessed.

"I'm, I'm the son of Herobrine." Truthfully, Jordan didn't know what to expect out of Sky. Would he be rejected? Called a freak, a monster? Jordan hoped not, but he knew Sky wouldn't be like that.

But he did not expect Sky to _laugh_.

Jordan blinked and glanced up, staring at Sky over his glasses. Ryan looked at the demon's son, then back at Sky. Sky had been through worse. When Jordan had told him he needed to talk, he expected something to do with the disappearance of Seto. Or maybe they had news of the squids, or _something_. He didn't expect this.

Sky's laughter died down when he saw the other two hadn't joined him in what he thought was a joke. "This- You're telling the truth?"

Jordan nodded once, frowning slightly. "Yeah. . . And-"

"Why are you guys telling me this?"

Ryan looked at Jordan. He hadn't been told why they were telling everyone, either. Jordan swallowed again, looking down at his hands. "It- I'll tell you when everyone else knows."

But with a nudge from Ryan, Jordan sighed and took off his glasses, rubbing his eyes. "I, he wants me back home. It was a deal, really. When I first came to the Overworld-"

"Wait, what do you mean? You didn't always live here?" Sky questioned, leaning forward like a child in the middle of story time.

"Well, it's a long story, so you might want to get comfortable."

Sky and Ryan nodded for Jordan to continue.

"It all started when I first saw a nether portal. . ."

_A ten-year-old Jordan stared at the black and purple structure in front of him. He wore simple dirty tan t-shirt and blue shorts, suitable for the fiery world around him. His small golden sword was drawn and he poked the portal's frame with the weapon. His father had always kept him away from this room that the portal was in, telling Jordan that he would get in trouble if he went there. _

_But Herobrine was away right now, and the Wither, who was supposed to be watching him, could care less about what Jordan did._

_Cautiously, the ten-year old crept up to the portal. His eyes shown white-much like his father's did, but to a lesser extent- as Jordan thought of all the possible outcomes of traveling to another dimension. He slowly stepped through._

Jordan paused in telling them the rest. This was the tougher part. Luckily, Sky stopped him with a question. "Your eyes glow? But I thought yet were blue. . ."

"Oh, yeah they do. These glasses I have are special, they make it look like I have normal eyes," Jordan explained, reaching up to touch the shades sitting on his nose. He hesitated in taking them off, but grabbed the arm of the accessory and removed the glasses. Instantly, his eyes melted into a soft white.

Sky gasped involuntarily, but regained his composer. "Neat trick, Sparklez."

"Right. This's gotten me into so many sticky situations. Remember that one week I didn't leave my house at all? It's because I lost these."

Sky nodded, remembering back. When he thought about it, the only one not trying to coax Jordan out was Ryan. He must have known much earlier than him. Jordan started talking again.

"So when I stepped out of the Nether and into the Overworld I made the worst possible mistake of my life."

_Herobrine had always told Jordan that humans were cruel, horrible monsters. Hero told him that some would hunt him down until he was dead, or kidnap him and lock him away. And Jordan believed every word that his dad said._

_But he was curious, and as everyone knows, curiosity killed the ocelot._

_The world that met Jordan's eyes was. . . colorful. Unlike the reds and oranges of the Nether, this place was full of greens and life. He turned in a full circle, eyes trying to take in all of it at once. It was wondrous, and he wondered why Herobrine told him to never go there._

_Jordan soon found out._

_Had had wandered away from the portal to explore a bit, and had happened upon a thriving village. Humans of all sizes roamed the gravel paths. Children laughed as they chased each other in a seemingly endless game of tag. Beaming, Jordan ran up to them and waved. One of them waved back, then abruptly stopped. The children froze and stared at Jordan, trembling._

_Then they turned and ran to their parents screaming. Jordan slowed and frowned sadly, slowing to a stop. "Hey! Don't worry, I won't bite!"_

_Suddenly, a hand pressed on his shoulder. He craned his neck around to look at his dad, who stood stock still. Jordan seemed to shrink under Herobrine's fierce glare._

_The so-called demon looked around the village. A house burst into flames, and the people screamed and ran. Jordan was forcefully turned around and walked back the way he came, but he still caught a glimpse of the burning village and all the death that was taking place. Herobrine brought him back to the Nether and locked him inside the fortress._

"And then I ran away. I left the Nether after seeing the world for the first time, and I've been able to stay away from Herobrine. Until now," Jordan finished. Ryan frowned. "You mentioned a deal earlier. What's that about?"

Jordan leaned forward, rubbing the bridge of his nose. Sky sat back, curiosity sparking in his eyes.

"We made a deal that I could stay for twelve years. Then I had to go back to the Nether." And then Jordan paused, wondering if the other little secret he kept should be revealed. He looked at Sky, really looked at him.

There were bags under the ex-infected Minecrafter's eyes. Sky didn't make eye contact with either of then for very long. And his posture was hunched, as if he was used to a heavy weight on his back. He kept rubbing the tips of his fingers a lot, too. So the rumors _had_ been true. But Jordan already had proof that what people said had happened was true. Unwillingly, his mind flashed back into a memory for a few moments.

-Flashback-

Jordan stood before a grave.

He bowed his head at the name printed on the stone. "So half of the rumors were true," he muttered, trailing off afterwards. He reached up and grabbed the red glasses off his eyes, letting the blue fade to his original white in a silent moment of respect. Seto would be missed...

"Jordan?" A voice whispered. The demi-god lifted his head and glanced around, eyes widening at what he saw.

Seto stood behind the headstone. Even though he was transparent and he floated a few inches off of the earth, it was definitely Seto. The deceased sorcerer reached a hand out to Jordan, but the son of Herobrine took a step back.

"Jordan, what am I doing here? Do you know where I am?"

A ghost. Jordan's body screamed at him to _move_, do _something_. His father had always said that ghosts were useless, that they needed to be eradicated and their souls collected. Jordan believed differently. Sure, he had never met a ghost, but there were always stories. If he ever found a rumor of a undead spirit, he would try to track down the source. But whenever Jordan was about to find the spirit, his father beat him to it. He never found out what happened to them if Herobrine caught them.

Jordan stared at Seto, white eyes wide. The sorcerer reached forward and did something that surprised them both. His hand touched Jordan's shoulder.

Seto stared at Jordan in shock. "N-nobody is able to see me. How can you... And what's with your eyes?..."

And so Jordan explained to Seto exactly what he had told Sky. It was hard to, but he managed to tell Seto. Then they saw that Sky had started walking towards Seto's grave. Quickly, before the ex-infected could see the two, Jordan grabbed Seto's shoulder. A moment later, a lighting bolt cracked the sky farther away. Seto and Jordan appeared below where the lightning had struck.

They watched their friend grieve over the ghost's body.

* * *

**Hello, peopleses! Here's another chapter of Insomnia for you! I want to tell you guys something. My bestest friend irl is making her first fanfiction! She's featuring me in it as a character! Her name's 01DragonFire,go sow her some love! I'll be beta reading her chapters, too. And I'm making a cover art for her fic. Oh and speaking of cover art, I need a pic for this story. So if any of you know a good picture, or if you have one, Pm me! I hope you enjoyed!**

**-Cold**


	3. Day 2

**Day 2**

**Time:** **8:13**

**Location: Graveyard **

Jordan made his way through the gravestones, heading towards the only hill in the graveyard. A transparent figure sat on a headstone. Jordan lifted his eyes up to the ghost, walking silently over to him. "Hey, Seto. How are you doing?"

Seto looked at him, eyes showing a slight melancholy. "As good as a dead person can feel."

Jordan sighed and sat down against the headstone, glancing up at the grey sky.

Seto sighed again and glanced around. Winter was well on its way. The browning trees showed that clearly, as well as the dropping temperature. Normally Seto loved this time of year, where the animals scurry around for food and the birds fly south to warmer regions. But now all it reminded him of was death. Silence covered the graveyard in a heavy blanket, chilled and stifling. Jordan spoke. "I can tell them, and you can get out of this graveyard."

It took Seto a moment to realize what he was talking about. "Oh, no. Don't tell them. I don't think they'd even want to know..."

Jordan pursed his lips together, sighing through his nose. "It isn't like they could kill you, Seto."

When the sorcerer winced and rubbed his side, the Demi-god knew that was the wrong thing to say. "... Alright, listen. I won't tell them, okay?"

Seto didn't meet his gaze. He didn't want to anymore. Now that he was what he was, he could see everything for what it really was. He didn't want to look at those eyes of Jordan's; those glowing blank eyes that reminded him too much of what happened to his parents when he was little. "Alright," Seto said after a moment, glancing up at the sky as a raindrop fell on his forehead.

Or rather, through his forehead. Another drop fell straight through the ghost, sending chilled shudders through his transparent body. He couldn't feel anything anymore, not since the squids had killed him. Only Jordan could see and hear him. Not even mindless animals could tell he was there. He closed his eyes and raised his face to the sky, longing for the cooling sensation of the rain

Jordan stood and sighed. "But on one condition." Seto opened his eyes and looked at him, meeting those eyes that he couldn't stand. The sorcerer took a moment to think, but then nodded. "Fine, but you don't tell anybody else. Okay?"

Jordan nodded and they started towards where the edge of a jungle was, far away from this dreary graveyard. With a few lightning cracks, they had appeared next to the tree. Jordan didn't want to flash directly onto Jerry's Tree in fear of setting it on fire. Seto floated over to the base of the tree, patting a pig on the head (even though his hand fell trough) as he passed. Jordan followed the ghost up the stairs. "Make yourself at home, Seto," he said once they reached the main floor. Seto smiled slightly at the Demi-god. "Thanks, Jordan. I really appreciate this."

"Don't mention it," the living one said, "You would've done the same for me."

Seto paused for a moment, then nodded slightly, wondering if he would have. Sure, Jordan was a friend, but he never really saw the demi-god very much. The ghost sighed and looked out over the railing, out at the grey skies. The view up here, even on the main floor, was amazing. Lush green trees spanned around for miles. And when the jungle stopped, plains and swamps met it. To the east, the lights of a city blinked in the rain. There, his other friends resided. Most of them, anyway. He knew Jerome lived in a forest on the other side of the city, and Kermit stayed next to a pond near Jerome's home. Seto's own house was hidden in the same forest, sitting in a small clearing. He wondered if it was still in tact.

But Seto guessed it didn't matter now. He was a ghost, and ghosts didn't need to have a house, or eat, or sleep, or _anything. _He looked over at Jordan, who was cooking something in one of the furnaces. "Hey, Jordan? Do you have an enchanting room anywhere?"

Jordan glanced up from the fire and nodded, gesturing to his left. "Yeah. The staircase over there leads to the next floor. The enchanting table is there."

Seto nodded and started towards the staircase Jordan mentioned. Automatically, his legs moved as if he was walking, but he didn't. The sorcerer sighed and willed himself to float forwards. He went up the stairs and looked around. He located the enchanting table easily, only glancing at the Nether portal once. The sorcerer sighed and hovered over to the table. The book, sensing a form of energy, opened to a random page and turned towards him. The pages slowly flipped over, as if taunting him. Seto scowled at the book. He knew he couldn't touch it anymore, but why must it torture him like this?

The ghost scowled and shoved his hand down on the book, utter shock flashing across his face as his hand slammed it closed. His eyebrows raised up, and he lifted his hand. The book opened again tentatively, flipping the pages that had been crushed gently. Seto frowned and smoothed the crumples out, gasping slightly at the feel of the old paper. This shouldn't be possible. He was dead, a ghost. he shouldn't be able to touch anything. Frown deepening, he flipped to one page. To any other person, the enchanting language was a mystery. But to Seto, it very well might have been written in plain Craftian*.

The book didn't only hold the every day enchantments. It held other mysteries and secrets. The page he opened to showed a potion recipe, for instance. His eyes skimmed over the page, then h flipped to another page. The book responded to him as if he were alive. This was good. More than good, it was _great. _If he could interact with an enchanting book, he could possibly interact with other magical things. A ghost of a smile creased his lips.

Maybe he wasn't as dead as he thought he was.

* * *

**Hello, peopleses. I just wanted to say a few things before this chapter is over. For those of you who didn't notice Seto's lack of videos lately, he explained it in one vid a few days ago. He said he had (quote) "gone through a state of deep depression..." So, I kind of incorporated that into this chapter. So it seems that Seto's world has faded to black and white now, hasn't it? I guess I would feel the same if I couldn't do anything but float around all day. I kind of feel bad for writing this chapter. And yes, it's sort of a filler. But, eh, I needed it up.**

*** - Craftian. I've used the term before, In _The End's Secret. _It's supposed to be the Minecraft language, since English, Swedish, Spanish, ect isn't technically in the game. You guys tell me if this should be a thing that appears in other chapters, or if I should just use real-world languages and stuff.**

**So I hoped you enjoyed this short-ish chapter! Oh, and I want to say that the chapters that I consider 'short' are under fifteen hundred words. Anything above that is medium, and above two-thousand is long. An example, for instance, is the ninth chapter of _Animal. _It's around three-thousand words long. So, yeah. :D Anyway, I'll have the next chapter out in about a week or so.**


	4. Day 3

**So I've been on an emotional rollercoaster as of the past week. Between marching band, homework, my stories, and all the other crap I've been juggling, I don't have much free time to myself anymore. Friday was a horrible day for me, and I was rushing to get this story out today. So, here you peopoleses go, another installment of Insomnia. I'm not sure if I'll be working on stories much right now. If I'm not, then I'll have an explanation in my bio. If you check there and you don't see one, then it means I'm still alive and kicking. So I hope you guys won't see one. Anyway, enjoy! Read, review, and save whatever animal you guys wish. (Preferably koalas)**

**KOALA POWER, YEAH! -Quote from 01DragonFire (when I was in a Skype call with her)**

* * *

**Day 3**

**Time: 1:46 A.M.**

**Location: Jerry's Tree**

Seto was still around the enchanting table when a white-eyed demon stepped out of the nether portal with a shining diamond sword in hand, ready for use If need be. Seto looked up from the book at the sudden spike in energy. He felt it in his very core that a dark magic was near him. Gulping, the ghost concentrated on falling. A few moments later, the sorcerer fell through the wooden floor underfoot.

Quickly, Seto flew to the room Jordan was sleeping in. He looked around, passing through the door. The Demi-god laid in the bed, sound asleep with his shades sitting next to him on a chest. A cat was curled up against his stomach, and she lifted her head as the ghost entered the bedroom. A bat hung from the ceiling, curious eyes staring at the ghost. (Or where the supernatural energy was radiating off of the ghost.)

Seto had heard the tales of how animals had a 'sixth sense' for supernatural beings. He guessed the tales were true. Quietly, he went over to Jordan as the dark energy moved to the stairs above them. Seto gulped and shook Jordan's shoulder. The living one grumbled and swatted the hands away. "F've more minu's..."

"Jordan, Jordan wake up. There's something here."

The Demigod sighed, but remained asleep. Seto bit his lip and glanced upwards. The demon seemed to be taking his time in getting down here. He looked back at Jordan.

"Get up, dammit! Jordan!"

"Hrmm?" Jordan mumbled, raising his head and rubbing an eye. "Seto, what-?"

Seto clamped a hand over the demigod's mouth. "Shh! There's a... your _dad_, on the upper level."

Jordan shot up immediately, white eyes snapping open. He swung his legs out from under the covers, making the cat scramble away so she wasn't kicked. "Sorry, Karry," the demigod mumbled, yanking a T-shirt over his head and hastily grabbing his shades. "Where is he?"

Seto pointed upwards, where light footsteps could be heard if they listened closely. Jordan cursed and slammed open the door. He looked over his shoulder at Seto. "Stay here, I don't know if he can see you or not."

"But-"

The door closed on the ghost as the demigod left. Seto sighed and floated through the door, following Jordan as he slowly made his way towards the stairs. "Come on, Jordan. What is he going to do? Kill me?"

"Possibly. I don't know what he does with spirits."

Seto shuddered at the thought of being in the hands of the dreaded demon and hung back, shoulders slumping in defeat. "Fine, I'll stay here. But if you aren't back in twenty minutes, I'm coming to look for you."

Jordan nodded and left the ghost on the main floor, walking slowly up the staircase. Herobrine was standing at the top, eyes tracing Jordan's every move.

The demigod stopped and glared at his father from behind his shades. The two stood there in silence before the older spoke. "Why must you wear those things on your face? They're hiding your eyes."

"My eyes are nothing but a curse," Jordan spat, "They've gotten me in trouble more times than I can count."

His father frowned and narrowed his white orbs at Jordan. "Don't defile your heritage. Be proud of having such power."

"Power?" Jordan sneered incredulously. "I don't want this power. The only power I have could destroy the ones I care about if I wasn't careful." Herobrine glared at him, eyes flashing. "You should not have made ties with the mortals, then. You knew the consequences, so why take the chances? The puny mortals should mean nothing to you. You're too soft, you need to grow up. Stop being like your mother. She was soft, and it got her killed."

Jordan's next words were low and heated with anger. "Don't talk about mom that way. It's your fault that she's gone, not hers."

Herobrine growled at the demigod, crossing his arms over his teal shirt. He started towards the Nether portal, turning abruptly on his heel and stalking towards the purple glow. Jordan felt a tug, and his eyes widened. He stumbled forward as an invisible hand pulled him along with his father. He scowled and dug his heels into the wood, desperately trying to keep his distance from the portal. "N-no!" he shouted, finally breaking free of the invisible grip. "I have another six days! That was the deal!"

Herobrine scowled, knowing his plan had been foiled. "I have changed my mind," he sneered, "You are to come home now."

"My home is here, not in that Notch-forsaken place!"

The demon's eyes flashed, and in a split second Jordan found himself pinned to the bark of Jerry's Tree by his throat, staring into his father's blazing white orbs. His shades were ripped off forcefully, revealing his own white eyes. They were softer than Herobrine's, less cold. But they glowed brighter when he glared back at the demon.

"I told you to never speak that name around me," Herobrine hissed, grip on Jordan's throat tightening for a second. "I told you not to, yet you do. Why?"

Jordan reached a hand up to his throat, but managed to spit out "Because Notch isn't a monster like you are."

There was a sound of glass shattering, which was probably his shades being thrown onto the ground and stomped on. Then he found himself sailing through the air. Jordan cried out when he back hit the wooden railing. He tried to get up, but his father pinned him against the fence. Jordan gasped for air, trying not to think of the large drop just below his head.

"Notch is a puny, weak, idiotic _thing_ that the mortals worship. You are to _never_ speak his name in my presence, or I will make sure you never see the light of the sun again."

Even though he was being choked to death, Jordan managed to bring a sneer to his face. "You're- You'd kill your own son?"

"I have no son. And even if I did, it wouldn't necessarily mean I'd kill you."

With that, Herobrine warped away with a crack of lightning. Jordan sighed, leaning away from the railing. He glanced around, but couldn't see the demon e called a father. The demigod rubbed his neck, wincing. Bruises were a definite. Oh well, he'd find someway to hide them. But his eyes were a different matter.

Gasping, he stumbled over to the broken shades that lay on the floorboards. Jordan knelt down, desperately trying to fit the two halves of the accessory together. It was no use. They were broken, and this was the only pair he had. 'No, no, no, no!" he muttered, dropping his hands onto his lap in defeat. This couldn't be happening. Now he couldn't go out into public without _everyone _finding out what he was. Maybe that had been Herobrine's intentions tonight. It probably had been, knowing his father.

Jordan swallowed and stood. "Great. This is just fanfriggintastic."

Well, at least there were only six more days until he didn't have to hide his heritage anymore. That was something to look forward too, right?


	5. Day 4

**Day 4**

**Time: 6:34 A.M**

**Location: Ryan's house.**

_'Ring... Ring... Ring...'_

"Come on, Jordan," Ryan muttered, foot tapping the ground impatiently. Nick looked over at him from the couch, feet kicked up on the arm chair. Instead of wearing his normal Power Ranger suit, he had street clothes on. His shaggy brown hair was tangled in bed head, dark green eyes still groggy from sleep. "So why do you want to call Jordan again?"

"He's Herobrine's son," Ryan replied, not even hesitating anymore. "And I really need to talk to him about something."

"Wh-wha?..." Nick sat up, shock written across his face. The batman nodded, sighing in frustration and dialing Jordan's number again. Finally, the demigod picked up.

"Hello?"

"Jordan, hi. No time to chat. Listen, I need you over here. Now."

"But what about- isn't Nick visiting your house right now?"

Ryan glanced at the one mentioned, who was starting to tug his Power Ranger suit on. "Yes. He is, but he already knows."

"What?! _How?_"

Ryan winced and rubbed his ear, pulling the phone away from his head for a moment. Finally he switched the cell to the other ear, where Jordan could be heard lecturing him. "-thought you would wait for me to tell the others. What changed your mind? I don't want the secret out yet, I still have-"

"Three more days, yeah. I get it, Jordan. But when you think about it, three days isn't very long."

There was silence on the other end. Ryan sighed an looked over at Nick, who was just pulling his helmet on.

"Look, Ryan, I-"

"Yeah, you wanted to tell them yourself. I'm sorry. But I've already got Sky to tell Team Crafted, and there are probably only a few people who don't know yet."

There was a clatter on the other side of the call and Ryan winced at the loud crash. Suddenly, Jordan's side of the conversation cut off.

_Beep, beep, beep, beep._

**Location: Jerry's Tree**

Jordan trembled, glaring down at the hated cell phone under his foot. His eyes blazed. Why would his friend _do_ this to him?! Sure, he could understand telling Nick, but having to bring the members from Team Crafted into this mess?

Jordan scowled, and for a moment his very essence resembled his father's. Then he sighed and relaxed, taking his foot off the ruined cell phone. Seto hovered a few feet away, patiently waiting for the demigod to calm down. Finally, the ghost said "I think you're overreacting."

Jordan's glare snapped up to the sorcerer, and Seto unintentionally froze in slight fear. Even though he wasn't Herobrine, Jordan had almost the same exact effect on people when he was angry. He could stop them dead in their tracks with those eyes of his. If he went out in public like this, people would definitely react negatively.

"How could I not overreact?" Jordan snapped, moving his glare away. Well, Seto assumed he did anyway, having no pupils to go by. "I just..." Jordan sighed and rubbed his eyes. "...I guess this is the best way to get things out."

Seto nodded and shrugged. He floated over to Jordan, laying a hesitant hand on the demigod's shoulder. "I'm sure Ryan has good intentions. He wouldn't do this if he knew you could."

"What?"

Seto rolled his eyes. "What I mean is that he knows you can't tell the others, even more so now that you don't have any glasses. So he took your job and started telling the others for you."

"...I guess."

Seto smirked slightly and floated down to the cell phone. "But I don't see why you had to ruin this poor phone. It didn't do anything to you."

Jordan rolled his eyes but said nothing.

**Location: Unknown**

His suit was in shreds. He should repair it soon.

Funny how the most frivolous things enter your mind when you were on the brink of death. It was hot. And dry. Two things that didn't go very well with him at all. He tried to lift a hand, but it was still strapped to the table; just as it had been for the past month. He hadn't even touched water since he last saw the sunlight. It was starting to get unbearable. Sure, he had been given enough gulps of water to keep him alive, but it wasn't saying much.

He groaned, shifting on the hard, bumpy table. He hadn't been on his feet in twenty days, either. When he was captured, they had thrown him in a cell. Then ten days later he had been taken to this torture chamber.

Footsteps echoed, and his amber* eyes widened. No, not again. He couldn't take another round of pain, of torture! A ragged cry escaped his throat, dry and burning from lack of water. His whole appearance was sickly; once blue skin now pale and drained of color.

The door swing open, and in walked the fabled white-eyed demon. "Hello, fish," the dark thing chuckled.

He gulped, too terrified to correct the demon. He shook visibly, wincing away from the burning scalpel that was pressed against the fin on his head. The devil smirked sadistically. "I was thinking we remove this thing today, but I do not think that your friends would like that very much." He chuckled and pressed the tool to his cheek.

He flinched away, jerking his head to the side. The next words that the demon said were ones that he had heard for the past month:

"If you would just tell me more, the suffering will end and I will let you go."

The 'fish' brought up a brief scowl, but it was wiped clean as the scalpel pierced his knee. He grunted in pain but didn't cry out. The burning hot metal was yanked out, then stabbed into his knee again. The demon left it there and grabbed a nasty-looking spear, prodding the same abused knee with the sharpened stick. With a grin, the demon jabbed his knee, then speared him through the calf. He cried out in pain, tears welling in his eyes. He blinked them back and glared weakly at the monster, then shook with fear as the demon brought out a bucket of lava. The being reached in and dipped his hand into the molten rock. "I have already mastered this one," he sneered. "Now the next needs to be conquered. Speak. Now, or I dump this on you."

He cracked then.

"Y-you need to embrace it. It-it isn't like... fire. Water is cool and...soothing. It-it's gentle. You n-need to accept it for it's kind-ness." His voice was raw and dry. He hasn't said anything other than that for the past month. It felt as if his throat was stuffed with cotton. And the cotton was on fire. Maybe his throat was on fire.

The demon chuckled and dipped a small dagger into the lava, drawing a thin swirl on the 'fish's' arm. He winced at the burning and shouted, writhing.

"Do not move, you will mess it up."

When the dagger was brought away, a scar of a whirlpool was burned into his shoulder. It would be almost impossible to hide if he ever got out of here.

"Thank you, Quentin. You just helped me take one more step towards the destruction of the Overworld."

Husky had never craved water more than he had then. But he couldn't have it, even though it was neatly tattooed into his shoulder. So close but yet so very far away.

* * *

**Yeah, I screwed up in the days count in the previous two chapters. But I fixed them, so by the time you read this they'll be fine. And yes, I gave Husky amber eyes. Why, may you ask? Because... I forgot he had black eyes. But by the time I had enough time to search up what color his skin's eyes were, I was too lazy to go back and change it. And besides, amber is better than black...**

**So yeah, I hope you enjoyed! If you would take the time to review I would greatly appreciate it! See you my peopleses!**


	6. Day 5

**Day 5**

**Time: 12:31**

**Location: Jerry's Tree**

Seto went through the book once more, eyes widening. This was... this was big. Bigger than big. He grabbed the enchantment book and ran to Jordan, who was on the main floor prepping for a trip. "Jordan! Jordan I found something! Look!"

The ghost shoved the book into the demigod's face, pointing at a paragraph on the left side of the page. Jordan blinked at it. "Seto, you do realize that I can't read that right?"

"Oh, well... Yeah, I did," the sorcerer said indignantly. He looked down at the foreign words. "It says that there may be a way to reverse what's happened to me."

"What? Where?" And against what he said a few moments ago, Jordan tugged the book from Seto's hands and stared blankly at the page. The ghost grabbed it back from him and started reading, easily deciphering the book. "There is tale of an unimaginable power in the sky. It says even a small pinprick of this power can do anything the user wishes." He stole a glance at Jordan's face, then went back to the script. "The power stays in a land of life and death. A beautiful land, floating islands and castles in the sky. Rivers and waterfalls, birds and plants and animals, everything lives happily. A place where it's eternally daylight."

Jordan had grown still as he heard Seto read. He knew this place, he's visited it. But now without his shades, he wasn't so sure that it would be good to go there. Seto looked up, a full smile lifting his face. "The Aether. Jordan, it speaks of the Aether. And you've got that portal down at the base of this tree. We can go and use some of that power it talks about. And I could be alive again!"

"Seto, I don't know... Things from the Nether don't fit in too well with the Aether."

"But-"

"_Jordan!_"

The shout came from below. The two glanced at each other and went to the railing, peering over to see Sky, waving his arms wildly. "Sky?" Seto whispered, eyes widening. "What's... What's wrong with him?" Sky was... not right. The ghost stared at the butter-lover, but Jordan grabbed his shoulder. He glanced at the demigod as Jordan went into the bedroom. Arching an eyebrow, Seto went to follow. He stopped at the door, watching Jordan rummage through a chest.

"Aha! Here we go." Jordan stood and turned, showing that a pair of sunglasses were sitting on his nose, much like Sky's. But his eyes still shown through, though. He glanced in the mirror, then ran to the staircase in the center of the tree. They're going to have to do for now, he told himself. They only had to last for a couple more days.

Seto sighed and fell through the floor, floating down to stand behind Sky. He knew the ex-infected couldn't see him, so he didn't say anything to Sky. But Sky wasn't... he wasn't Sky. His skin was grey. Something _wasn't_ right. Seto shook his head slowly. He was probably just seeing Sky as he had the last time he saw him up close, which was right before the sorcerer had... well...

Jordan walked over to Sky, greeting him with a friendly nod. "What brings you here, Sky?"

"It-it's Jerome! He's gone!"

"What?"

"Your dad, he came and_ took_ Jerome!"

Jordan was alarmed. What would Herobrine want with a baca? "How long ago did-"

"We don't know, I called him earlier and when he didn't respond I went to go see him. Kermit was panicked, and he said something about white eyes and lighting, and then we found a note, and- and- and-" Sky has worked himself into a panic by then, frantically rubbing his fingertips and biting his lip. His foot tapped the ground, and he couldn't seem to sit still. Seto felt bad for him.

Jordan bit his bottom lip, eyebrows drawing down into a scowl. He sighed and held Sky by the shoulders. "Sky, listen. We'll find Jerome. Okay? He'll be fine, I'll go look for him now."

Sky nodded frantically. "Yeah, and I'm going to come with you."

"I don't think-"

"I can't let another one of my friends die, Jordan. The guilt's already too much to take."

Jordan sighed and looked over at Seto, who floated silently behind Sky. The ghost gave a small shake if his head. The demigod sighed again and looked at Sky. "Well, I was about to go to the Aether. But Jerome is more important."

"But-" Jordan shot a quick glare at Seto.

Sky thought for a moment, then nodded once. "Alright. But I'm still coming with you.

"...Fine."

They were halfway up the stairs when Sky froze. He made a noise at the back of his throat. Jordan turned and looked at him, arching an eyebrow. Seto floated next to him, slightly uneasy at the way Sky seemed to be staring at him. No, he shouldn't be able to see him. It wasn't possible.

"J-Jordan?" Sky stuttered, "I-is that _Seto_?"

Seto took a step back, away from the two living ones. The spirit swallowed, wide brown eyes staring at Sky, who returned the gaze. Jordan broke the tense silence, seeing that the other two weren't going to move from their staring contest. "You can see him, Sky?"

"How could I not?!" Sky practically screamed, one hand grabbing a handful of hair and the other extended out towards the sorcerer. "He's dead! It's an illusion! This isn't real!"

Jordan quickly shook his head, holding his arms out. "Listen, Sky. Seto isn't as... dead as we'd thought he was. He's still Seto, standing right here in front of you."

Sky was shaking his head slowly, still staring at the ghost in disbelief. "No... no, he's dead. I saw him die. This isn't real! He should be _dead_!"

Seto winced, slightly hurt at Sky's harsh words, but he quickly went to comfort his living friend. "Sky, I'm not dead. Well, I'm not exactly alive but not exactly dead either. I'm a ghost. Sky... Sky!"

The ex-infected turned and ran from the two, back down the stairs. _"Sky!"_

Jordan placed a hand on Seto's shoulder, sighing. "Seto, I think we should give him a bit of space. I mean, he just found out that you're a ghost. He's probably really confused right now."

Seto sighed and nodded slowly, head hanging low. He looked back down the stairs, but Sky was already gone. "Yeah... I guess..."

"W-wait? Don't you want to go to the Aet-"

"No," Seto said quietly, floating up the stairs. "Let's just go get Jerome."

Jordan nodded and followed the sorcerer up the stairs.

A very ticked Ryan was sitting on the main level of the tree, foot tapping the ground impatiently as Jordan made his way up the stairs. "What the hell, Jordan? I told you to come see me over two hours ago! And where did you sunglasses go? Did you break those too, grumpy?"

Jordan growled at the batman, effectively shutting him up. "Have you seen Sky?"

Ryan shook his head, exasperated. "No, but I'm guessing you heard the news about Jerome."

Jordan nodded and looked past Ryan, where Nick stood awkwardly. He gave a short wave, still slightly shocked at the truth. Jordan nodded at him, then turned back to Ryan. "I don't appreciate you telling everyone. Who knows?"

"Everybody, now." Before Jordan could yell, he quickly rephrased what he said. "Well, not everybody. Just our friends, nobody else."

Jordan still seemed angry. "And how do you know they won't tell anybody else?"

"..."

"I thought so," Jordan grumbled, glaring at his friend. "And you didn't have to tell Nick." he gestured to the pink Power Ranger. "You could have just brought him here and I would have shown him."

Ryan was about to reply, but Jordan cut him off with a sigh and started towards the stairs that lead to the Nether portal. "Let's just go get Jerome," he said curtly, grabbing Jerry's Sword from where it was leaning against the wall. The two friends and the ghost followed him. "Jordan, listen," Nick started. "I don't mind you being a..."

"Demigod," Jordan filled. "My father was a god, but was cast down from the Aether. I'm only half of a god."

"I don't mind that you're a demigod. It's just... Why did you hide it from us?"

Jordan sighed, looking over t the Nether portal. "Well-"

He was interrupted when a flaming arrow whizzed by his head, missing him by an inch. He stopped and went to the railing, looking down. A mob of people stood below, torching the base of Jerry's Tree. But what really caught his attention was the single word every single one of them were shouting.

"Demon!"

* * *

**Looks like the word got out about Jordan's secret, but the question is...**

**Who did it?**


	7. Day 6

**Day 6**

**Time: 12:58 p.m.**

**Location: Jerry's Tree**

"Demon, demon, demon!"

The word had become a chant by now, and Jordan tried his best to tune it out. It stung, knowing that those he had protected were shouting that at him. But what really hurt him was the burning anger within his heart. He hated them for this. Lightning crackled overhead, but the sky lacked any clouds. This only fueled the mob's rage.

"Come out, you fucking monster!"

Jordan's hands curled into fists and he spun towards the railing, but Ryan pulled him back. "No, Jordan! Don't listen to them!"

The demigod glared at his friend, eyes blazing from behind the replacement shades. He growled and shrugged the batman off, stalking over to the railing. The words echoed in his head, bouncing off the walls of his thoughts and feelings. "Monster! Animal! Demon! Beast!"

On and on and on...

He grabbed the shades off his head and jumped over the railing. Lightning crackled and he was warped to the top of Jerry's Tree. All he had to do was raise his hand, and it started raining. Then came the thunder, then the lightning. The people below didn't seen to notice the storm until one of them looked up and realized that there weren't by clouds. The fire sizzled, the rain fell in torrents, and the sun shown above. There was a scream when the earth under their feet started opening up, swallowing a few pitiful souls.

He jerked his hand to the side, and lightning shot down on son of the people, leaving only ashes. The ground shook again, crumbling away under them. They screamed an ran. The rain fell the entire time, extinguishing the fires that had raged around Jerry's Tree.

Jordan grinned cruelly, white eyes bright with anger. He curled his fingers towards him, and more lightning struck at the remaining people.

"Jordan!"

It was Seto. The demigod turned slightly, just enough to glare at him. "Jordan, _stop_."

He sneered and dropped his arm, turning around fully. He couldn't put his fury into words then. All he knew was that the spirit was in his way. His friend was against him. He was siding with the mortals! When he raised his hand again, Seto steeled himself and floated over to him.

Jordan struck, bringing his hand down in an arch. Lightning crackled, running straight through Seto. The ghost didn't even wince as what would have killed him passed through his body. His shoulders slumped in slight defeat. Jordan would have killed him then if he hadn't already been dead. "Jordan, stop before you hurt yourself. You already harmed your own people, do yourself a favor and calm down."

_-"Calm down? Calm down?!"-_ Jordan screeched, and his voice changed in pitch. It jumped down and seemed to echo; it wasn't human. Nowhere close to it.

_-"Give me three good reasons why I should calm down!"-_

Seto swallowed, taking another few steps closer. "Jordan, this isn't you...You don't want to be like your father, do you?"

Suddenly, the lightning and thunder stopped. The rain let up soon after, falling into a drizzle, then to nothing. The rumbling in the earth came to a slow halt, and Jordan collapsed to his knees, gasping as if he were in pain. Wincing, the demigod brought up a shaky hand to his chest, grasping where his heart was. He shouldn't have used so much power, now he had to face the consequences. He stood up, still holding his chest, and stumbled over to the edge of the tree. What he saw nearly made him fall off the edge.

Bodies. The dead ones of the people he had tried so hard to protect for years. He hurt his own kingdom. What used to be his people were strewn across the ground, some completely unrecognizable and some just piles of ash. Another bolt of lightning shot the earth, and the demigod disappeared off the tree.

When he came back up, Ryan and Nick were sitting against the bark of the tree. They were silent, jumping to their feet when Jordan approached them. Seto was floating nearby, unwilling to get close to the living souls in case they would see him. When Ryan opened his mouth to say something, Jordan simply shook his head and started walking to the Nether portal, green sword dragging the ground behind him.

Seto followed him, head hanging down. He understood how Jordan felt, having lost people close to him before. But not like this. The ghost sighed and looked over his shoulder, where Ryan and Nick were slowly making their way towards Jordan.

"We're going to find Jerome," the demigod spoke quickly, softly, as if he was afraid of his own voice. "With or without Sky. And I need to have a talk with my father."

**Location: The Nether**

A brown, fury creature was thrown roughly into his cage. He looked up, dull amber eyes not even bothering to widen in hope. He had hallucinated so many times by now, he was sure that the baca standing in front if him was an illusion. He sighed and let his head fall back into his arms.

After the scar had healed over, it had turned a silvery color against his blue skin. Whenever he found himself thinking about it, his mind and body would kind of... shut down, like he didn't want to think about water or the scar.

A hand shook his shoulder, and he jerked away from the touch as if it burned. The illusion before him blinked, slightly surprised at the blue one's reaction. "Husky, Husky it's me, Jerome. Buddy, look at me."

When Jerome got no response from the mudkipz, he kneeled down next to him. "Husky, is anyone in there? Hello?" Worry was evident in his tone. Not only was Quentin unresponsive, even though he was definitely awake, he didn't seem to be quite all there. "Husky... _Please_, buddy. I can't help you if you don't talk."

Jerome saw the scar when he reached over to touch the blue one's shoulder. His dark brown-almost black-eyes widened and he quickly retracted his hand. "My god, Quentin. What happened to you?"

He was surprised when he got a response. A shaky, weak sigh escaped Husky's lips, and the dull amber eyes went up to meet Jerome's concerned brown ones. "J-... Jerome? I- are you actually h-here?"

"Yeah, buddy, I'm here."

Husky stared at him in disbelief. This couldn't be real, they had forgotten about him. They had left him for dead. But the worry in Jerome's eyes was true; it was actually there, unlike all the hallucinations that had plagued him for the past month. For the first time in a month, hope started sprouting within his chest. "Jerome, you didn't forget me?"

"Of course not, I-"

"Well, look at this," a voice that Husky had learned to fear chuckled. Footsteps echoed against the maroon brick floors. They stopped just outside the two's cell. "Such a joyful reunion. Too bad I need to cut it short."

Jerome glared at their captor with a snarl, brown eyes alight with anger. He stood up, spreading his arms out in a protective manor. "You monster," he shouted at the demon, "What did you do to Husky?"

Suddenly, a line of solid water snaked through the netherrack bars. It took the form of a fish and swam around their heads. "Oh, I was just getting a bit of data from him."

"About what?" The baca growled out, eyes never leaving the fish made out of water. Husky trembled behind him, eyes wide and fearful. He knew very well what was about to happen. He just wished he could do something to save Jerome from the same fate he had fallen into.

The demon before them smirked, clenching a fist. The water fell to the ground, quickly evaporating on the hot surface of the nether brick. "The element of water, of course. I needed a bit of information before I could control it, you know."

Jerome glared at Herobrine, fists clenching. "Why?"

"So I could destroy the Overworld. You know the four main elements, yes? Well, all I need now is your element, and then air, and then the fifth one. Ecnorite."

"Ecnorite?"

Herobrine nodded. He held out a hand, and a small silver key materialized. "But I need information on yours. Earth, or as some know it, life."

Jerome steeled himself, narrowing his eyes to hide the small twinge of fear that strung at his heart. He wouldn't give the demon what he wanted. As the demon turned the key in the lock, he got ready to fight.

"And if you retaliate or if you do not tell me what I want to know, that fish will meet his end."

This made Jerome freeze, eyes darting down to Husky, who looked so miserable it was unbearable to look at. The baca swallowed. Tell Herobrine what he wanted to hear or let his friend die? He could always try to make a run for it, but he was sure that Husky wouldn't be able to make it. And he wouldn't leave a friend behind to face this monster alone. The stubbornness inside Jerome arose. He didn't want to do either of these things. All he wanted was to get Quentin out of this hell.

Finally, after what seemed like an hour, the fluffy sighed. "Fine... I'll tell you what you need to know." He meet the demon's smug gaze with a resilient glare. Shoving down the fear that welled up, Jerome swallowed and spoke again. "But only as long as you let Husky go."

The demon frowned, scowling darkly. He thought for a moment and a slow grin worked its way over the scowl. "Fine."

The demon stalked forward and grabbed Jerome by the wrist. "He's free to go, as long as he can get out." With that, and one more glance between the two Overworld beings, Jerome was dragged away.

Husky's eyes widened when he realized where the baca was being taken. "N-no! Jerome!" But before the baca could turn around, he was teleported away. Husky stumbled to his feet in a fit of anger an terror, but fell back to his knees. What had he done? He had just sat there while his friend was taken to the torture chamber. The mudkipz shuddered involuntarily, rubbing the scar over his shoulder. He knew exactly what Herobrine was going to do. Even though Jerome was willing to talk, that didn't mean that he wouldn't be tortured.

But he also knew the devastation that was looming over their heads.

Herobrine needed only three more elements to master, two now that he had Jerome. If he conquered all of them, he would go to the Overworld and destroy it with the very essences that made it. Husky thought back to what the demon had told him just after the placement of the scar.

_-When Notch and I made the Overworld, we created elements. Four main ones, and the fifth most powerful. Air, water, earth, fire and ecnorite. These were the building blocks of the world. I already have control over fire, and now I have water. When I conquer all of them, I will be unstoppable. Not even god can save you then.-_

The world was nearly doomed, to say the least.

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**.**

**Location: Torture chamber**

Two hours.

Two hours, and he was in pure hell. Jerome didn't think that it could have gotten any worse until the demon pulled out a knife and dipped it into lava. Then he began etching something into Jerome's shoulder. The baca cried out in pain. He could feel his fur burning; he hoped it didn't catch on fire. He had been aflame before and it wasn't very fun. After what felt like another five hours, the blade was discarded into a pot.

By the time the demon had put the blade away, Jerome was twitching in pain and fear. He knew it could have been worse. From Husky's appearance, and how he had been missing for a month, he knew it could have been _much_ worse. When he glanced over at the carved wound, he winced. It was already scarring into that silver that was on Husky. But the drawing itself is what disturbed him most.

The sketch of a tree, barren of leaves, was carved into his shoulder. It might have symbolized something. Maybe it was a warning sign of the impending danger that lurked in the Nether, or how life was nothing but a fantasy here. Or maybe it signaled that he should give up hope in surviving the eminent doom of the Overworld.

Or maybe it outright said that life as he knew it was over.

* * *

**Some of you, back in chapter five, thought that the one being tortured was Jerome. Hehe... well, I would like to thank you for that, because you gave me this idea. So it looks like Herobrine is trying to conquer the elements. Hmm... Oh, and Ecnorite. I was originally going to call it something else, but... eh, whatever. So Ecnorite is like the king of all elements. Like, the main four combined... yeah. And I need someone to represent air. (Like Husky was water, and Jerome was earth/life) And let me clear another thing up. By life, I mean plat life/nature. Yup.**

**Oh, by the way. It's very clear that Jordan has control over the weather. Should he have more powers? Less? If so, any suggestions? I already have a thing planned out, but I want to hear you peoples's ideas. :D So, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter. Remember to leave a review, maybe drop a favorite or a follow. Whatever, it's up to you. See you in the next chapter, peopleses!**


	8. Day 7

**Day 7**

**Time: 2:45 p.m.**

**Location: Jerry's Tree**

Jason landed on the main floor. The jet pack on his back whirred as it shut down. He took a cautious step forward, calling out for Jordan. Or anyone. He needed to tell him something urgent. There wasn't a response.

He ran around, but the only living things that met him were a bat and a cat. He stared at them for a good full minute, then turned around to go to the other side of the tree. Jordan must be somewh-

"Oh, it looks like Jordan has a visitor," a voice said from behind him. "Too bad he isn't here. How about we wait for him together?"

Jason whipped around, freezing on the spot when he was met with two white orbs. His own eyes, which were a light grey, widened behind his space helmet. Herobrine was leaning against the bark of the tree, almost casually. The demon grinned evilly at the spaceman. "While we wait, I do need to ask you something. Something very... _important_."

Unbeknownst to Jason, the demon had slipped a dagger out. The familiar, blood-splattered blade had already been dipped into lava, making it shine an iridescent silver-gold.

Originally, this blade was going to be a gift to Jordan when he welcomed the fact that he was what he was. But when he showed no signs of accepting it, Herobrine had kept it for himself. Now, it played a crucial part in his scheme.

The blade was enchanted, so that no matter what, the blood of its enemies will stain onto the metal. Herobrine had grown used to pouring lava over it so that the blade would be clean and ready for use. A slow smile crawled over his face as he spoke again. "Do you know that you are special, Jason?"

"How do you know my name?"

Herobrine shrugged, leaving the spaceman to sort through his thoughts. The demon pushed off the wall and stalked over to the railing, quiet as a cat. Devious as one, too. He was leaving Jason in suspense, and it seemed to be working by the way the spaceman was gradually letting his guard down. The demon looked over the massacre that was sprawled out across the ground. His son had been doing some dirty work, had he?

Good. That's how he should have grown up.

"Yes, you are special. You know what air is, right? The element." He could sense Jason nod behind him. "Well, I need a bit more intel on that particular element. And you, Jason. Are the only person that I could get it from."

NOW Jason knew he was in trouble. Taking a few hasty steps back, he tried to evade the swift punch thrown his way. He barely dodged it. The spaceman kicked his jet pack into gear, jumping over the railing of the tree. Suddenly, a rope of water tied around his ankles. Gritting his teeth, he swung up to try to get it off. Suddenly, warning signals flashed before his eyes. Lights blinked on inside his helmet. Words scrawled across the screen on the far right corner of the helmet's mask.

**Warning: Overheating in process. Overheating in process. Suit shutting down. Running system check. Temp.- 98 Fuel-87% Jet power-13%**

Shit. He squirmed, suddenly realizing how far away the ground was. If his jet pack failed, it would mean death. Suddenly, fire enveloped his body, the suit protecting him from being burned.. There was the overheating failure. But why was his jet power so low? He craned his neck, trying to kick away the rope of solid water that was wrapped around his legs.

Herobrine smirked down at the mortal, twitching his fingers towads him. Suddenly, Jason was jerked back into the main floor. The spaceman, now released from the two elements, scrambled backwards to get away from Herobrine. In a flash, Jason was grabbed by the throat and pressed against the wall, knife at the back of his neck. Normally, he felt his suit would protect him against any blade, but with the frantic messages scrawling across the screen in front of his eyes, he wasn't so sure anymore.

Herobrine smirked, placing the edge of the dagger right where Jason's neck met his shoulder. The chink in the armor. Slowly, he slid the blade across the suit, not drawing blood, but easily cutting the spacesuit.

**Error. Error. Error. Error.**

Jason gulped and tried to squirm away, but the knife returned to his now-unprotected throat.

"You will tell me what I want now," the demon growled out, making a clean slash. Jason's right sleeve started slipping off. "Or you will meet the same fate as Quentin.

"Husky?!"

The demon shut him up by placing the point of the white-hot blade to his shoulder. "What is the secret to the air element?"

Jason grunted, pain spiking from where the knife touched his skin. He grit his teeth, squeezing his eyes shut. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Lies," the demon hissed. Fire snaked over to Jason's neck, settling just above his skin. From an inch away, the spaceman could already tell what would happen if that fire touched him.

Jason shivered. Fire had always terrified him ever since his home had been burned down. The fear was rooted deep, making him shake in his boots. He cracked open his eyes, holding very, _very_ still. His heart pounded and he didn't know if he was more terrified of the demon or the ring of fire.

"I am waiting..."

Jason swallowed, sending a brief prayer to Notch that his friends would forgive him. He didn't know what Herobrine wanted with the knowledge of the air element, but it couldn't have been good.

"Air... It's energetic and hard to tame. But if you're patient enough..."

_**Husky - Flashback**_

"Mam, why can't I go swimmin'?"

A young blue mudkip held his mother's hand as he asked the question he did every time they got near a body of water. The female amphibian sighed and shook her head. "Quentin, I've told you before already," she said the same thing she always did. "I want to protect you, if other people found out you were special, I'd have to leave you."

The smaller mudkip nodded, sadly looking out to the crystalline lake that sat so peacefully right in front of them. He glanced around, then back up to his mom. "What about dis one time? Nobody's around besides me and yous."

The toddler then have her a puppy-eyed gaze, sticking out his bottom lip pitifully. "Pwease?" he begged.

She sighed again, trying to resist the look her child was giving to her. Don't look, don't look, don't look, don't...

"Oh, alright. Fine, go ahead."

"Yay! Thanks Mam!" Husky cheered, skipping happily over to the edge of the water. He spread his arms out, and a giant wave came and swept him into the lake. The mother sat down near the shore, content to watch her child play. She sighed happily as Quentin made the water sweep him into the air, then he would splash down from ten feet above the water line. He performed numerous tricks, ranging from spins to flips to dives. Her child had always been good at controlling the water.

Suddenly there was a shout from behind her. She turned to find her ex-husband angrily making his way towards her, eyes never leaving Husky. A group of people were following him. The mother turned on her heel and shouted. "Quentin! Run!"

The young toddler stopped and stared, standing on top of a shaky pillar made of water. He dropped back into the lake and swam to the opposite shore. Quentin pushed all thoughts of his mother out of his head. This is what she had taught him; when she said run, he runs. Don't look back. It wouldn't help him.

He made a wave to push him to shore faster. As soon as the soles of his bare feet hit the ground, he ran. He didn't ever look back.

**Location: The Nether**

Husky limped through the maze of corridors, leaning heavily on a wall. He was exhausted, injured, starving, and dying of thirst. Things didn't look very good for him. He stumbled, falling to the ground. The amphibian let out a shaky sigh as his eyes closed. He was useless.

He ran when he should have stayed next to his mother, and he can't even get out of a Nether fortress. Sure, it was a maze, but she should be able to at least WALK.

Suddenly, a voice spoke. Husky flinched away, waiting for the pain that the voice usually brought. But it sounded concerned, for once. What? Why would Herobrine be _concerned_ over him?...

"Husky? Ryan, get the water bottle." He felt someone kneel beside him, and when a hand touched his scarred shoulder, he hissed and rolled onto his bank.

"Oh god... No, not this. Not this!" Fingers lightly traced his scar, making him grunt and try to push the hand away. Thankfully, they left. The rim of a bottle pressed to his lips, and water trickles into his mouth. For a moment, he forgot about the pain and sat up, greedily taking the water bottle and downing it.

When he looked at his savior, relief flooded through him. It wasn't the demon, it was Jordan. "S-Sp-"

"When did you get this?" Jordan interrupted him by lightly touching his shoulder again. Husky flinched away, shaking his head. "He-Hero..."

That was all Jordan needed to hear. He growled and stood up, glancing at the others that came with him. "Nick, Ryan, you need to bring him back to the Overworld. Make sure you get him water. I'm going to find Herobrine."

"But-" Thunder roared, making them jump and glance at the ceiling. "No buts, just help Quentin."

They sighed and nodded, helping the amphibian onto his feet so they could support him. Husky looked at Jordan, really looked at him. Then the resemblance struck. "You- you're..."

Jordan nodded, and that was all Husky needed. What he didn't need was for Jordan to take off his shades, showing a flash of white eyes before the mudkip passed out.

_**Jerome - Flashback**_

A young baca, alone and lost, sat in front of a sapling. He sniffed, staring at the sapling with sad eyes as he hugged his knees. Where had his family gone? One minute they were there, then they weren't.

A splash sounded from the small pond that was a few meters away. Lifting his head, the baca looked over to find a frog. Hunger entered his mind and, against his usual vegetarian diet, he leaped at the amphibian. The frog screamed and stumbled back towards the pond. "Not cool, man! Stop!"

The furry one stopped, as he was told. He blinked at the amphibian, dark brown eyes curious. "You... You talk?"

The frog sniffed, brushing dirt off the white tuxedo that was twice his size. "Of course I do! Why wouldn't I?" he snapped, but he couldn't hide the fact that his eyes were watering. The baca tilted his head to the side. "Hey, are you okay?"

The frog stuttered something, s shaking hi head. His black eyes flicked up to meet the baca. "No... I just don't want to be eaten."

To the frog's surprise, the brown one laughed. Glancing up, eyes wide in slight confusion, the frog jumped. "D-don't laugh! It's not funny!"

"I-I'm sorry. Hey, I wasn't _really_ going to eat you. I just, um, wanted to give you a scare."

The green one snorted and rolled his drying eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. "Yeah, right. You so wanted to eat my legs. I bet you had a cooking pot set up back at home."

The baca looked down, shoulders slumping. "Well, I don't really have a home..."

The frog blinked at him. "No way, I don't either! We can be homeless buddies!"

The baca grinned at the frog, hope swelling like a giant wave inside him. "Really?"

The frog nodded and gestured towards the small pond. A lily pad floated in the center. "See that large leaf in the middle? I live under that!"

The baca frowned slightly. "Oh, uh."

"Wait, wait, wait! This is the best part!" The frog jumped into the pond, swimming under the lily pad. He surfaced slightly, with the foliage sitting on his head. He stayed like that for a few minutes, swimming around until he surfaced. "Incognito mode activated!"

The baca smiled and looked over at the sapling. "Well, I can do this!"

He lifted a furry paw, and the sapling sprouted into a tree. The frog's eyes widened and he jumped out of the pond. "Whoa! Can you make it any bigger?"

The baca furrowed his brow and clenched his hand into a fist. The tree started growing, slowly at first, then picking up a more frantic growth rate. Branches spilled out from the trunk, leaves unfurling and turning towards the sun. When the tree had fully grown into the size of a jungle tree, the baca stopped and grinned proudly at his work. "Ta-da!"

The frog clapped, jumping up and down. "That was so awesome! You should do that again and again and again!" He stopped and looked at the baca. "So what's your name? I mean, my new buddy has to have a name."

"I'm Jerome."

"I'm Kermit, buddy!"

Buddy... He liked the sound of that.

**Location: The Nether**

Jerome grunted slightly, sprawled out on the floor, unconscious. He was in a cell, with a nether brick floor, walls, and ceiling.

Outside his cell, Jason was pushed into his own. The spaceman was calling for the baca, but he went without a response. Finally, Jason gave up and got lost in his memories as Herovrine left them in the hot, dry prison. Husky was nowhere to be seen.

_**Jason - Flashback**_

A young boy, just above toddler age, stood next to a smoldering house. Another boy stood next to him. Each were covered in soot, each bawling their eyes out. Their throats burned from smoke and their clothes were singed.

One turned to the other, light brown hair matted with ash and soot. "Come on, Jason... Let's go."

The other, dark brown hair the same as his, shook his head frantically. "No, I need... I need to get something." Without another word, he jumped, landing on top of the smoldering roof. After a short moment of searching, he found a hole in the roof. With the stupidity a seven year old should have, he jumped down it.

"Jason!"

The other one ran towards the house, pounding on the door, only to take his ands away when the wood nearly burnt him. "Jason!"

Jason searched through the rubble of the inside. Finally, after moving away a piece of wood that looked like it used to be part of a table, he saw it. The helmet. The orange visor was smeared with grime, and the blue cloth was smoldering. Quickly, the seven-year-old patted the helmet, getting rid of the sizzle that was coming from it.

He took it up in his arms, standing up and glancing around at the smoke-filled house. The smoke barely bothered him now. Tendrils of cool, clean air swept around Jason, warding of the noxious fumes.

The other boy was still standing outside, but he wasn't pounding on the door anymore. Instead, he was standing a meter away with his arms outstretched. Small swirls of purple and silver were coming off of his hands, traveling through the air and towards the door. The child trembled, willing the swirls further. When they touched the door, it shook. The kid's lips thinned, and then the door was blown off its hinges by the swirls. Finally, he collapsed, gasping on the floor. After a minute, he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up, hoping for an adult. What he got scared him to death. Crying out in fear, he scrambled away. Soft white eyes stared at him, then glanced towards the door as Jason came running out of the house.

Quickly, the new kid snapped his hand up to put on some strange-looking red shades. He stared at him, terrified. Jason walked over to his friend, offering a hand to help him up. The helmet was cradled in his other arm.

When he was standing, he quickly grabbed Jason and turned on his heel. "Come in, Jason! Get away from it!"

"Wh-what?" Jason yelled, having no choice but to stumble after his friend. When he looked back, the boy was still standing there, like a statue. The way he seemed to stare at them made him shiver. Suddenly, he dug his heels into the ground, pulling the other to a stop. "But wait! We forgot Jeffery!"

"Who?"

"My pig!"

"Oh, come on, Jason! If we go back, that thing'll kill us!"

"But its just another kid, maybe he was from our village."

The other shook his head, eyes never leaving the kid and the house. "No, it had eyes like what set our village on fire. White eyes. Demon eyes."

Jason shook his head stubbornly and turned back to the house, stalking towards the boy. "Hey, kid!"

The boy looked up over the rim of his shades, baby blue eyes wide. "Yes?" He asked quietly, as if Jason was going to hit him or something. "What do you want?"

"Are you from our village?" His friend asked suspiciously, coming back up to them. The boy paused, then shook his head, almost sadly. "No. I am, uh, I am running from someone."

Jason smiled slightly and held out a hand that wasn't holding his helmet. "Then we haven't met! My name's Jason, and this is Seto!"

The boy stared at his hand, then tentatively tapped it with his fingers. He smiled at the two, Jason and Seto, and held out his own hand. Jason grinned slightly, and tapped it like the boy had his. "I am -," the boy said.

"Hey, -! Well, we were about to leave here for... obvious reasons. You can join us."

The boy blinked ad glanced over his shoulder. Suddenly noticing the feeling of eyes watching him. His father must have found him! The young boy panicked, quickly shaking his head and stepping away from the two Overworld boys. "N-no, I think I know where I am. I- I will see you again someday, but I must leave now! Farewell!"

With that, the runaway turned on his heel and ran the opposite direction. Seto narrowed his eyes; he knew that the new boy was suspicious, but this only spiked his paranoia. He didn't know why the boy's eyes were blue now when they had been white a few minutes ago and he didn't want to know.

He turned around and started walking. "Let's go, Jason. Grab Jeffery and then catch up to me."

The seven-year-old nodded, still staring after the boy. He sighed and plopped the helmet into his head, then ran over to the half-burnt pen that his per pig was sitting in. Jeffery blinked and looked at him, still wearing that ever-blank expression. When he saw his owner, he stood and trotted over to Jason. Snuffling, the pig pushed his head into Jason's hand. The boy smiled and lead the pig out of the pin. "Let's go, Jeffery. There's nothing left for us here."

**Location: The Nether**

Jason sighed, leaning his head back against the wall. His shoulder still burned with pain, but he refused to look at the feather-shaped scar. With Herobrine asking about the air element, he couldn't help but go back and think about that one day the he and Seto had left their village after the demon had destroyed it for unknown reasons. He remembered how the boy had run after they had met. He and Seto had never found him, and the memory was blurry when he thought back. All he could remember was how the baby blue eyes looked slightly off, as if they didn't belong to the boy. That was the only detail he could remember.

And then there was Seto, who he hadn't seen for a while until the fiasco with Sky came up, and then he had...

He sighed looked to his right, where a barred window was sitting. The spaceman stared out into the hell, then sighed and closed his eyes. Jerome was in the cell next to him, but the baca hadn't responded to anything Jason had called. The wall between them hid each other from sight, so Jason had assumed that the fluffy was unconscious. He wondered why he was here.

The demon had already carved a feather on his shoulder an made him give away vital information on his element, so why keep him locked up in here?

**Location: Alter**

Herobrine punched the totem in the middle of the room, scowling. Fire crackled behind him, and the newly mastered wind swirled around the flames, making them grow larger than normal. The only element the demon had yet to conquer was Ecnorite, but there weren't any more wizards in the world that had mastered the element. There had been one, but then it had just gone and thrown himself onto a sword. Perfect.

Herobrine growled in frustration, shaking his head and pacing. He glanced towards the totem pole, which was made of five different colored blocks stacked on top of each other. The bottom was a orange-red, then the next was a light blue, then vibrant green with specks of brown. The next was white with light grey swirls wrapped around it. The top one, a silvery purple, was the last element that Herobrine needed. If only there was someone who could supply it to him.

There was a reason behind the scars he carefully tattooed into the Overworlder's shoulders. They were special, made to drain energy from the person's element. The energy would travel to the totem, allowing Herobrine to conquer the element. As soon as Ecnorite was mastered, the Overworld was doomed. But there wasn't anybody who could supply the energy or the information to the specific element, so he was at a dead end.

Footsteps tapped against the ground. Herobrine looked up as someone came rushing into the room. The demon smiled slightly, nodding to the person. "To tell you the truth, I didn't think you would actually manage to do what I asked."

The person nodded breathlessly, leaning on his knees. "I-I managed to do what you asked, and more."

The demon's eyes narrowed and he gestured for the person to continue. He did, without much hesitation. "There's a spirit, one that knows the fifth. He- he came here with your son. I wouldn't be surprised if you saw him soon."

The demon grinned wickedly and stalked over to one side of the room, where a shelf of book cases lined the wall. He plucked one black and silver book out from the others and flipped through the pages. His eyes scanned the page for a moment, then he tossed it over to the person. "Here, take this to Jordan and the ghost, make sure they still think you're him."

He nodded, flashing sharp fangs when he smiled. Dark, grey-blue eyes narrowed, pupil widening in the dim light, which covered most of the eye. "Will do, sir," the animal said, giving an exaggerated salute before turning on his heel. Slowly, he could feel a tentacle rip through the skin on his back, which quickly joined the one already there. The monster grinned again. He wasn't as dead as they had thought.

* * *

**I would like to thank Guest 1, Guest 2 and Guest 3 for the suggestions of Jason being the air elemental person. And some of you wanted Sky to be it, but I already have a plan for him. So, yeah. Looks like Sky's animal isn't really gone, is he? When Jordan was ratted out on, I asked for who you guys thought it was. All of you got it wrong. :}**

**So I hoped you enjoyed this chapter of Insomnia, it took me a while to write it. It's over 4,000 words, by the way. So leave a review, it helps me know what I'm doing wrong or right! Goodbye, my peopleses!**


	9. 5 Days Until Destruction

**Song of the Chapter: Bring me to Life by Evanescence**

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**5 Days until destruction**

**Time: 9:34 p.m.**

**Location: Alter**

Herobrine tapped his foot impatiently, waiting for the animal to show up with what he sent him out for. It shouldn't take this long to un-dig a grave and get a body. It should be quick and quiet unless you running trouble. Knowing the damn squid, he probably had gotten into troub-

"Sorry it took so long," the animal grunted as he dragged in what he was sent for. "There was a bit of a bump in my original plan, but I managed to work around it."

Herobrine shook his head, exasperated and annoyed. "Fine, just set it under the alter. I'll get the rest of what we need."

The animal walked towards the totem, dragging it behind him by a tentacle. He started muttering to himself, a bad habit of his, and let the thing fall to the bottom of the totem.

Already, the top block had started to flare slightly. And that was just with the body. Imagine it with the soul actually alive and breathing.

Herobrine grinned slightly and turned on his heel. "Now, you will go back to the Overworld. Rally up my son's friends, claiming you had nearly gotten 'kidnapped' by me. Tell them you managed to get away, but you were not able to save the flea-bitten dog-"

"Bacca."

"Whatever, same thing."

"Well, not really. A dog runs on all fours. A bacca stands upright and acts like a human. Just like how octopi have eight tentacles and squids have-"

"Yes, you have told me this before. I am very aware that your kind has only six tentacles. Now, if you would-"

"Yeah, yeah. I get it. Go bring the other humans here. What from there?"

Herobrine growled at the squid's snarky attitude. He glared at the animal, then started walking down one hallway. "Get rid of them. Stab them in the back, but do not draw it out. I know you want your revenge for them getting rid of you, but do not be stupid. You know that if you were to drag it out and make then suffer that you will fail. Just get it over with."

The squid nodded as Herobrine stalked away from the alter, towards his son and the spirit.

**Location: Jail cell**

Jerome heard banging. Really loud banging. It took his brain a moment to register the noise and when it did, his eyelids fluttered open. There was a... person kicking his cell's door in. Blinking, the bacca sat up, then stood up. "Hm?"

"Ssh," the person hushed, "they can only hear what noise out bodies make, not natural noises. Hush up."

With a few more licks, the door finally creaked open. It was Jordan. Jason was standing behind him, lacking the full-body suit he usually wore. Instead, it was just his helmet. But immediately, the bacca's eyes traveled to his shoulder, where a silver feather was scarred into the spaceman's skin.

His own scar burned underneath his fur, as if it was reliving the feeling of the dagger. Jerome stood shakily, leaning against the wall then walking out of the cage door. "Jordan, your dad-"

"Ssh!" Jordan hushed, then pointed to the left of them. A strange, gargoyle-like creature was perched in a window. It had inky black skin, bony wings, and sharp, foot-long claws. It's face was blank except for two tall, feathery ears where its eyes should have been. No nostrils, no mouth, no eyes. Now Jerome understood why he should be quiet, it must rely on sound to navigate.

Seto was staring at the creature. Imps, Jordan had called them. The devil's helpers. The demigod had described them in startling detail before they had even come across one, too. He described them as devious little creatures, bloodthirsty. They wouldn't think twice about striking you down and killing you brutally. Dangerous to be around if they were in a bad mood. Jordan also said they could be your best friend, if raised and tamed right-more loyal than a dog would be.

But Seto, even though he was a ghost, didn't want to chance it.

The sorcerer glanced over his shoulder at the three, sighing quietly. He floated over to Jordan and spoke, thinking that the imp wouldn't hear him since he's dead. "Jordan, where would your fath-"

That was as at as he got before the imp sprung into the air, fast as lightning. It clicked it's claws together and leaped at Seto, falling through the ghost's body only to try to attack him again.

Instantly, Jordan grabbed its ears. The imp screeched, making a muffled noise from the back of its throat. The animal reached up and tried to claw at the demigod, only to be wrangled to the ground.

"pmi, em ot netsil ouY," Jordan hissed at it, wrapping his arms around the little creature so he could keep it from running away. The imp froze for a moment, ears twitching. Slowly, Jordan stood and dusted himself off. The imp remained on the ground, cowering before the demigod.

Jordan glared at it behind the replacement shades and spoke a few more clipped words in the unfamiliar language. The creature visibly shook, then turned on its heel and darted away. Jerome blinked and looked after the imp. "What?... Just happened?"

Herobrine smirked at the imp as it ran towards him. He knelt down and stretched out an arm, expecting for it to run to him. Instead, the imp swerved and raced away. For a moment, the demon was confused. Then his smirk grew and he stood, continuing down the specific hallway. Jordan was his way.

He stayed low, following he faint sound of voices. Herobrine peered around a corner, and there they were. The two with the scars, the ghost, and his son. He only needed the ghost, the animal could deal with the rest. The small group turned and started in his direction, blissfully unaware of the danger that lurked ahead of them.

But the ghost could sense that Herobrine was close. He could tell by the way the ghost glanced around, keeping as close to Jordan as possible without making it awkward. When Jordan shoved the ghost away slightly, pretending to reach out to make the other two stop, Herobrine pounced.

Seto knew something was up, he could feel it in the very essence of his being. A danger was near to them. His subconscious mind made him move closer to Jordan, but the demigod pushed him away slightly, casting a warning glance at the ghost.

He kept his arm out and put a finger to his lips. "I think-"

That was when it went all to hell.

The demon himself jumped at Seto, taking the ghost by surprise. A wall of pure fire swept around him and the ex-god. When the flames settled down, Herobrine had Seto in a headlock. By the collective gasp from Jason and Jerome, he could tell that they could see him. Somehow, some of the demon's power had let them. Maybe it was just that extra boost that Seto needed to be more alive, but still dead.

Herobrine smirked, then he and Seto disappeared.

**Location: Alter**

The animal stared as the ghost was dragged in, struggling to get free of Herobrine's grasp. He watched, slightly amused, as Seto was set down on the alter, right next to his own body. "I take it went well?"

Herobrine grunted, and jerked his head as a signal for him to come over and hold the struggling ghost. "I thought you would have left already."

The squid shrugged, simply, waving a new tentacle through the air. "I decided to stay and help."

"You won't be much help right now, just keep him down."

"Aye aye, Captain Brine."

The ex-god scowled and took a few steps away from the alter, raising his hands. He muttered something intelligible, and suddenly a silvery purple light erupted from the soon-to-be-inhabited body. The light slowly turned a shade of crimson violet, and the squid could practically taste the dark magic in the air.

Suddenly, the ghost screamed, colors flickering from red an purple and silver. The animal jumped away in surprise, but the spirit wasn't going to move anywhere.

_Pain._

That was all there was. It felt like he was dying again. But in a different way. The ghost clutched at his chest, feeling something twist there. Deep down, somewhere in his subconsciousness, something ripped apart. He froze, face plastered with pain and shock before he fell back to the ground, limp.

Two things happened that Seto was aware of:

He felt empty suddenly, but it didn't last long as he dissipated into nothingness. And then he took a breath. A breath of actual air. Hot and dry, but air. Seto blinked once, twice, thrice. Nether brick was under him, rough and heated. He could feel, actually _feel_!

Seto's eyes widened and he tried to air up, suddenly very tired now. Gravity pressed down on him, something he hadn't felt for a month.

Then a hand wrapped around his throat, stealing away the newly achieved oxygen. Seto gasped for the wanted air as he was lifted off the ground. A blade was pressed against his shoulder, and it made him jump. His skin and body were sensitive, not used to feeling.

Seto lifted his eyes from the ground to stare into white orbs. But he wasn't scared, not anymore. He felt numb, somehow; as if he didn't care that he was probably staring into death's eyes once again.

"What is the secret to Ecnorite?"

At the mention if the fifth element, Seto stilled, eyes wide. "N-no..." he whispered, "I won't- I won't tell you!"

The demon grasped his throat even tighter, completely blocking off his airway. Seto choked, bringing a shaky hand up to pry at the iron grip.

"Do you want to die again, only to be brought back to life?"

Against his will, his now-beating heart skipped a beat. No, not that torture again. He couldn't do it. Finally, after a long, suffocated silence, he opened his mouth and spoke. "I will _never_ tell you."

Little wisps of silvery purple were starting to curl around the sorcerer. From the way Herobrine's eyes suddenly flashed in anger, Seto knew that the ex-god had noticed the magic. Seto weakly lifted an arm, and a burst of light shot out, slamming into Herobrine's chest. The demon was flung to the other side of the room, where he crashed into the wall.

When the dust settled, Seto was standing tall, strength suddenly flooding through him. He clenched a fist, and swiped it through the air. A few blocks sprung up from the ground, then rushed through the air towards Herobrine. The demon retaliated by kicking out, creating a gust of wind that knocked the Nether Brick's path off. The maroon brick sailed into the wall, nearly hitting the animal who jumped out of the way.

The sorcerer scowled and moved a few more blocks around him, creating a make-shift shield as fire swept across the ground. He raised a hand into the air, flicking his wrist to the left. Shards of quartz zoomed towards the demon, sharp points glinting in the light of the fire. Herobrine brought up a wall of ice, stopping the shards in their tracks.

The battle continued for a while. It could have been minutes, or it could have been hours; Seto didn't know and he didn't care, right now he was focused on just keeping himself alive. The animal had gone at the beginning of the fight, slipping back into the portal to the Overworld. Neither Seto or Herobrine had paid much attention to him. It was surprisingly an almost-even fight (though Seto rarely got any chance to strike). But in the end, Herobrine got the upper hand over the sorcerer, pinning him to the ground with that evil blade pressed against his arm.

"Now," the demon said, "what was that secret you wanted to tell me?"


	10. 4 Days Until Destruction

_I want to thank StressOfWriting for giving it to me straight by saying that I'm drifting away from Jordan's problem and focusing a wide range of attention to Team Crafted and Herobrine. He/she is right, but I think I've got it planned out to put the focus back onto Jordan. But alas, this chapter is completely focused on Team Crafted and the animal rather than Jordan. There is something near the end of the chapter, but this chapter isn't touching much on Jordan at all. Sorry about that, CaptainSparklez fanatics. But hey, this story has around four to five chapters left of it._

_And yes, there will be a sequel to this sequel. ;} And I give half-credit to my friend for the idea of it, because I was almost completely stumped... Bah, I'll tell you later when I actually finish this one and start the new one. But I think you peopleses will like it. I'm so tempted to tell you who it will center around, but I don't want to spoil the surprise, yeah?_

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**Song of the chapter: _Live Free or Let Me Die _by Linkin Park**

**4 Days until destruction**

**Time: 10:23**

**Location: Unknown**

The animal grinned down at the person in the cage. "Well, well. Look at what we have here. The mighty Sky, downed by a simple cage."

Sky glared at him, then turned his gaze away. "You aren't going to get away with this."

The animal chuckled, kneeling down next to his double. "But I already have," he whispered tauntingly, dragging navy blue claws across the bars of the cage.

Sky growled at him. "My friends will stop you."

"How do you know that? They think I'm you. I just need to pluck a few strings, pull a few chords, and then they're in the palm of my hand."

Sky scowled at him, letting silence fall over the two. The animal huffed, reaching through the bars and grabbing Sky by the collar. "Listen... As soon as the rest of your 'friends' are dead, I'll let you go. How does that sound?"

Sky's reaction was to crane his neck down so he could bite the animal's hand. He hissed and yanked his hand out of the bars. The monster growled at his double, rubbing his hand. He shook his head and turned around, making sure to whack Sky through the bars with a tentacle.

Sky glared at the animal, then looked away. An escape plan had been made; he had been just about to escape when the squid came back.

The animal rummaged through a bag, sorting through the various things in it. He pulled out a steel glove and grinned, slipping it easily over his dark navy claws. He curled his hand into a fist, taking a few swings at the air. If he hit somebody with this, he could possibly kill them. He turned his palm up, noticing that this area was bare f protection. Strange, but he wouldn't question it.

Sky watched as the monster pulled the glove's other out of the bag, putting it on the other hand. He scowled at his double. "What are those for?"

"Oh, Sky. You know so little of murdering people," the animal tssked, "But sadly, I don't have the time to teach you the ins and outs of homicide." He licked his teeth, running a forked tongue over the fangs. "I need to go now, need to find your friends."

He laughed at the horror written over Sky's features.  
"No... _No_!"

The animal turned, ignoring Sky, and walked to the stairs that led to the top floor of Sky's house. The ex-infected was literally captured right under his friends' noses.

"Sorry, Sky. I'll let them know you said hi. Just remember, though." The squid turned as grinned evilly at Sky. "In their eyes, you were the one that killed them."

He walked to the top of the stairs, shutting the door, muting Sky's cry of horror and rage. The animal grinned, turning the key to lock the door behind him. He proceeded into the bathroom, grabbing a jacket from a hanger as he walked.

The animal tugged the leather jacket over his T-shirt and jeans, carefully tucking the six tentacles under it. He turned in front of the mirror, carefully looking over his back. It was smooth and flat if he kept his extra appendages in just the right spot, which wouldn't be too hard.

The animal curled his claws, glancing down at them. These would be harder to conceal, but that's what the gloves were for. All he needed was navy blue spray paint.

He opened a cabinet above the sink, grabbing the bottle of paint. The animal shook it, took off one of his gloves, and proceeded to paint the gauntlet. When he put it back on, you couldn't tell the difference between his claws and the gauntlet.

**Location: Jerome's Treehouse**

The animal raised a fist and pounded on the door of the tree house, trying not to look down at the dizzying drop just a few feet behind him. Why did the damn bacca have to live in a tree? Who knew he was afraid of heights.

To his surprise, batman opened the door instead of the frog. "Yes? Oh, Sky! Where have you been? You look terrible."

Quickly, the animal checked over himself. He had made himself grimy and smeared with soot to make it look as if he'd been in the Nether. It seemed to have worked.

He feigned exhaustion and nearly collapsed onto the batman. "Th-the Nether," he croaked dryly, praying to Notch that his acting skills wouldn't give out now.

"He-Herobrine got me and was asking about som-something a-a-and." That's as as far as he got before the batman brought him into the tree. Acting: Success. Now the hard part.

He was lead into the living room, where a few other members from Team Crafted sat. Dawn was sitting on a stool next to Husky, who was awake but laying on the couch. Kermit was sitting at the bar that led to the kitchen, where Nick was rummaging through the fridge. A man he didn't know was leaning against the wall, talking to the headphone-wearing human and a teenager with a plaid jacket. A pink Power anger was standing a few feet away from the door. Everyone looked up when they came in.

Apparently, the initial reaction for a human when seeing a friend hurt is to swarm them, asking meaningless questions and fretting over the smallest of thing. The animal put up with it for a bit before pretend-limping over to the couch. He sat down, nearly crushing the mudkip's feet. Husky didn't seem to mind, prying one of his feet out from under the animal. "Sky, buddy. What's happened to you?"

Dawn seemed a bit distant from him, but he didn't care. As long as she thought he was Sky. The animal leaned back, closing his eyes for a moment. It was then that he realized he had forgotten his shades. Mentally cursing his forgetfulness, he rubbed one of his eyes with the palm of his hand, pressing slightly until he saw splashes of colors. "I was just-you know-doing normal stuff. I think I was on one of those new parkour courses, the ones with a bunch of troll faces in it?" He gratefully accepted a glass of water, gulping half of it down before continuing. "And then he showed up. He threatened me, then took me to that hell. I-I-I... There were others. There was Jordan, and-and..."

"And?" The teen with the jacket prompted. The animal hid a smirk as he told them, waiting for their faces. "Seto. Seto's alive."

The humans suddenly became very, very still. Finally, Kermit broke the silence. "No way. It can't be possible..."

The animal nodded, kicking in his acting skills again. Just a few more minutes, and he'd have them wrapped around his claws. "He is. I saw him fighting Herobrine. You trust me, don't you? I'm your friend, why wouldn't you believe what I say?"

And that was the deciding factor. Team Crafted was sold. The others were immediately asking question after question, trying to weed out any information he had on Seto. Finally, it got too much for the animal. He stood suddenly, pushing the others away. "Guys, please. Let me breath." He glanced down at the empty glass in his hand, then looked over at Ty and held it out to him. The animal tried not to make eye contact. "Hey, Tyle- Ty, can you fill this up for me?"

Deadlox nodded, taking the cup and walking to an adjacent room where the kitchen was. The animal followed him, clicking his claws together quietly. Finally, he could get his revenge on this petty human. As Ty turned his back on the animal, he raised a clawed hand to strike the human down.

**Flashback - Jordan**

His name was CaptainSparklez. He preferred his nickname, Jordan. He was twelve. He had just ran away from home. Home was hell, or as other people know it, the Nether. He was the son of Herobrine. He didn't think himself of the son of that demon any longer. He was in the Overworld. This was his new home. But was it really?

Jordan huddled under a small, sorry excuse for a jungle tree as the rain poured down around him. What was this? _Water? _From the _sky? _Not only was this utterly confusing, the thunderstorm was terrifying. He didn't know what this _was. _Thunder cracked overhead, and he cried out in fear. His father had always told him crying was weak, but he couldn't help it. The young demigod couldn't tell whether the water streaming down his face was rain or tears. He furiously wiped his eyes, just wishing for all the noise and the cold and the water to stop.

Lightning crackled and split the air over him, quickly followed by thunder. The storm raged around him, uprooting trees and tearing out other things that Jordan was unfamiliar with. He sniffled, clamping his hands over his ears. "Stop!" he screamed into the wind. "Just _stop!" _

And it did. Everything froze; not even the wind dared to move. Slowly, the clouds cleared to reveal a starry night sky and a giant full moon. Jordan shivered, looking around. The lightning was the last thing to go, but it eventually settled down. It was then that Jordan looked up.

Immediately, the boy's breath was stolen from him. "Are these... stars? Is this what Mom always talked about?" he whispered to himself, captivated by the crystals sprawled out on the black canvas. The moon shone silver, casting a soft glow down on the boy and the tiny jungle tree. He hugged his knees closer, suddenly wanting the comforting heat of the Nether.

"Such a wonderful night out tonight," he muttered, sighing and looking down. Even though he was the one that ran away, he still missed his father and his old home. "It's such a shame I have no one to share it with..."


	11. 3 Days Until Destruction

_I'm real sorry for the delay, my peopleses. I've been a semi-depressed state for a while and I just didn't feel like doing anything. I didn't write, I didn't roleplay, I didn't do anything. But I'm better now, so today I devoted all the time I had into writing. Now I wanted to say something. The song of the chapter is more of a song that fits the story, but most are for the chapter. So, I'll see you soon, my peopleses._

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**Song of the chapter: _This is War _by Three Seconds to Mars**

**3 Days Until Destruction**

**Time: 9:39**

**Location: Sky's House**

Sky watched the animal slam the door shut, casting the room into darkness save the one candle to the right of his cage. The butter lover scowled then scooted over to the left of the cage, reaching an arm out between the bars.

"Come on, come on..." Sky grunted, stretching his fingers as far as they could go. Even though the animal was smart, he was extremely forgetful and ignorant. A small, iron dagger lay inches from Sky's fingertips. It wasn't much, but it was all he had. The ex-infected grunted again, pressing against the bars.

Finally, his fingers brushed the blade of the dagger. With a few more tries, Sky was able to bring it towards him. He twisted his arm to get it back into the cage, setting the dagger down so he could. When his hand was free, he reached back out and gently grasped the blade with two fingers, dragging it through the bars.

Sky smirked slightly and scooted over to the other end of the cage, glancing over the lock that kept him captured. This shouldn't be too hard.

It took him a while, but he managed to pick the lock. The final click that emitted from the metal casing came with a wave of relief. Slowly, the door to the cage swung open. Sky wasted no time in standing up and bolting out. He paused at the top of the stairs, listening. When he deemed it safe, it tried to turn the doorknob. It was locked, of course.

"Dammit," Sky cursed, yanking on the handle. He sighed and turned around, going back down the stairs. He searched around. Crawling on the floor and looking under shelves and tables for something to open the door with. He sighed, sitting back on his knees after searching another shelf held nothing that would get him out of this basement. The bag that the animal had been sorting through caught his eye. Sky grinned and stood up, walking over to it hurriedly. After a few moments, he drew a rusty crowbar from the bag. "Yes," he whispered, turning around and running up to the door at the top of the stairs.

Sky wedged the crowbar in the crack of the door and pulled, smiling at the sound of cracking wood. He tugged harder and after a few tense moments of tugging, the door gave way. He blinked at the sudden brightness, swinging open the broken door. He glanced at it as the wood crumbled and fell, leaving the door hanging off only one hinge. Sky shrugged and started towards the door. Now to find and save his friends.

**Location: The Nether**

**Time: 9:39**

'_I'm sorry, guys,_' Seto thought to himself, trying not to look down at the lava pool underneath his feet. He looked up instead, up at the demon that was threateningly pushing the sorcerer's fingers off the ledge. He had refused to talk, so this was punishable by death.

The sorcerer grunted and shifted, trying to get a better grip on the scorching got Nether-rack. Herobrine grinned and stepped down on his foot lightly. "Now that you know that you will die, and that I will bring you back only to kill you again, is there not something you would like to tell me?"

"Go drown in a well," Seto spat out, swinging his legs up to try and get his footing. No use, they just slipped back down.

Suddenly, purple and silver wisps swirled around him. The lava reared up, branching into swirls that represented the purple and silver ones. Herobrine looked slightly surprised, but easily brought up a gust of wind to push the nearing lava away. He glanced down at Seto when the air did nothing. The sorcerer smirked up at him, then...

He let go.

What Herobrine didn't know was that as block had dislodged itself from the cliff face, floating under Seto. The sorcerer hit the block and commanded it to float closer to the cliff. The lava behind him paused then fell back down with a splash. He could hear Herobrine sigh above him. "Go get the body," the demon said. A couple moments later, three pigmen jumped down into the lava, followed by two blazes.

Seto tried to keep the swirls hidden, desperately grabbing them from the air. He couldn't get rid if all of them, if he did the block under him would fall, but most of the swirls were safely tucked away.

He watched the mobs warily, then raised one hand and let some magic out. Instantly, blocks fell from the cliff and crushed the mobs.

Herobrine himself then readied to jump down after seeing what happened to his mobs. He glared down at the lava pool. And then the sorcerer appeared in a wave of silver, purple, and lava. The grin on his face was lively, almost deranged. "This is for hurting my friends!"

A silver whip snapped forward, curling around the demon's foot and flinging him into the side of the Nether fortress that was near. Another came down and grabbed him around the waist, tossing him into the air and preparing to catch him. With a growl the ex-god teleported away.

This didn't deter Seto, who just raised both hands. The wisps formed together to create a purple barrier. The Kat time he used this, he had died. This time, though, he wouldn't let himself be so weak.

**Location: Alter**

"Seto! Seto!"

Jerome and Jason watched as Jordan ran around the room, turning over everything to find 'Seto'. The two glanced at each other, both thinking the same thing: Jordan had gone insane.

They couldn't have seen the sorcerer caught in a headlock, struggling against Herobrine. They just couldn't have. Jason sighed, glancing at the alter in the middle of the room. He walked up to it, ghosting his fingers across the one that he knew was his element's representative. It matched his eyes, he thought. The light grey and white seemed to move inn slow, fluid motions-like wind currents. He felt a sudden surge of power when he touched the block, and he turned to call Jerome over.

"Which one is yours?" He asked when the bacca was standing next to him. Jerome pointed at the green and brown-speckled one. "That one."

The fluffy reached over and wiped away a smudge on the shiny block. He gasped at the surge of power and glanced at Jason. "You feel that?"

The spaceman nodded and glanced over at Jordan. Surely the demigod had one of these blocks as a representative for his element. "Jordan. Which one is yours?" Jason asked.

The demigod glanced over at the two and shook his head, turning away curtly. "None of them are."

"Oh." Jason frowned and took his hand off the block. All if a sudden, winds whipped through the air in frenzy. Jerome yelped and ducked, taking his hand off the totem as well. Unnatural trees started sprouting randomly.

Jordan jumped, whirling around to take in what was happening. He turned and glared at the two. "Get control, dang it!" He stomped his foot in annoyance when his glasses were ripped off his head in a hot, dry gale of wind. A dark red tree sprouted up next to him and he jumped away.

Jason shook and held out a hand, twisting it sharply to the left. The winds slowly died down. Jerome knelt and touched his hands to the floor. Trees stopped sprouting, and those that had grown started to shrink into nothing.

They turned to see Jordan glaring at them, white orbs narrowed. Jason cleared his throat, scuffing the floor with his foot. "Sorry, Jordan. I didn't know."

Jerome nodded and echoed the spaceman. The demigod across from them sighed and shook his head. "Don't apologize, I should have told you not to touch the totem. He glanced around the room. "But that was impressive, both of you. We should get going; we need to find Seto before anything bad happens."

**Location: The Nether**

Seto ran as fast as he could back to the Nether Fortress, chest heaving. The ex-god was following him, fire springing up from the ground when Herobrine got close. "You can't run forever," the demon hissed.

Seto shivered and picked up the pace. His magic energy was starting to drain from the overuse of it in the past hours, but that didn't deter him. He needed to reach the other three-and quickly.

Two blocks of the wall in front of him moved away to create a hole, which he jumped through and into the fortress. The hole shut close behind him, sealing the demon outside for a short moment. Seto panted, pausing to look back at the wall then turning around and running. "Jordan!" he shouted, never pausing in his long, frantic strides. "Jason, Jerome!"

He turned a corner, nearly running into a tree. Gasping, he skidded to a stop and asked the most intelligent question his mind could process at that moment. "Huh?"

The tree was a blood red with darker leaves. Orange, glowing berries spotted the branches and one fell to the floor as a heavy breeze blew by. When Seto tried to move one of the logs away, his magic just bumped off it. Seto smirked slightly and pressed his back against the wall, sliding past the tree and continuing on. His friends were this way.

He slid around a corner, face brightening when his three friends came into view. "Guys-!"

Something struck him from behind, grabbing him in a headlock. He didn't need to look to know that the demon had caught up with him. He shouted, struggling against Herobrine. The other three turned and immediately started towards the sorcerer.

"Take one more step and I'll kill him," the demon hissed smugly, knowing that the Overworlders wouldn't want their suddenly alive friend dead again.

"Jordan, is that _Seto_?" Jason asked quietly, glancing at the demigod out of the corner of his eye. Jordan nodded, never taking his eyes off his father and Seto. His fists clenched and he scowled at his father. "Let Seto go," he growled, tone dark. Herobrine smirked, pressing a blade to the sorcerer's neck. "Make me, son."

Jordan bristled at the comment. "I am not your son. I told you to never call me that."

Jerome quietly started to make his way to the totem; only Seto noticed the bacca, but he kept quiet. The ex-god glared at his son, eyes flashing. "I raised you for half of your life. I'm the one who taught you how to kill." He grinned. "I saw what you did to those Overworlders. Good job, I'm proud of you."

Jordan had nothing to say. His tongue couldn't seem form words past his anger. He looked down for a moment, then back up at his 'father'. "I can see why you killed mom, you heartless bastard."

Flames suddenly sprung up around the group as Herobrine stabbed the knife into Seto's shoulder. "How _dare _you!"

Seto cried out, trying to get away. He called upon his magic, but it suddenly fled his body as the shining blade was scraped down his arm in a wavy line. It was ripped away; only to be stabbed back down as the demon shouted something in the language Jordan had spoken to the imp earlier. ".ti rof deksa ehS"

Jordan hissed and thunder rumbled. "!uoy morf em tcetorp ot gniyrt saw ehS" He shouted, jumping forward to stop the demon from carving scar into Seto's arm. A wall of air slapped him away, preventing him from coming closer. Suddenly silver and purple magic started to swirl around Seto and Herobrine. The demon dragged the blade down the sorcerer's arm several more times before finally throwing Seto to the ground. The wall of air parted, allowing the sorcerer to roll away from the demon. The purple in the wisps slowly turned a dark maroon-crimson, a shade lighter than the Nether brick. Seto gasped in pain, cradling his arm.

He couldn't help but glance down at the forming scar as Jason ran over to him. Jerome quickly abandoned the totem to help the spaceman in supporting their now-alive friend up onto his feet. They tried not to look at the wound.

His sleeve had been torn off when the demon had started carving the wound into his arm. It was quickly scabbing over, only for the scabs to peel away into a scar. The wound traveled all the way down his arm, looking exactly like the swirls that would swim around him when he used his magic. It was so unlike Jerome's and Jason's neat, small scars that it was terrifying. Seto tore his gaze away from his wound to find that the demon had teleported away, leaving Jordan kneeling on the ground.

Jason let the bacca take the weight of Seto, who was surprisingly quick to recover. The spaceman knelt down next to Jordan, placing a tentative hand on the demigod's shoulder. "Jordan?"

The demigod blinked and looked up at him with dulled eyes. A frown pulled at the corners of his lips and he quickly stood, turning sharply on his heel. "Come. Herobrine is going to the Overworld."

"How do you kno-"

"I just do. Trust me. He just conquered Ecnorite, he'll want to put the element to action as soon as possible. We need to hurry if you want to save our friends."

He started walking, leaving the other three with no choice but to follow.


	12. 2 Days Until Destruction

_What's this? Two chapters in one DAY? Absolutely amazing, isn't it? Well, I told you that I would see you soon. Lol. So I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's short, but the double post will hopefully make up for it._

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**Song of the chapter: **_**Whisper **_**by Evanescence**

**2 Days Until Destruction**

**Time: 10:35**

**Location: Jerome's Treehouse**

Dealox turned, only to stare into the blue-grey eyes of the animal. Sharp claws gleamed in the moonlight that filtered in through the window. "Sky…" Ty breathed, putting all his fear, disappointment, and betrayal into that one name. He closed his eyes shut as the claws swiped down.

Crimson splashed down onto the floorboards.

**Time: 10:34**

Sky slammed the door open, glancing around the inside of the redwood tree Jerome called home. He wasted no time in answering the exclamations of surprise from the group-instead quickly scouting the room. The animal wasn't there. Sky cursed and ran towards the kitchen, where Ty had just turned around and was staring at the animal, who up until then had been parading around as Sky. The claws raised started coming down, as if in slow motion. Sky jumped forward, holding himself out instead of Deadlox.

Blood splattered the floor. Sky hissed as his arm was cut open, but the plating on his armor* took the brunt of the damage. He was glad that he had his suit on; it would help in the battle that was sure to come.

He smirked at the animal's surprise. "You can't get rid of me that easily, you know."

"Sky?"

The two look-alikes turned to Deadlox. The real Sky winked, golden-brown eyes sparkling. The animal sneered at the teen then shoved Sky away. The butter lover grinned cockily, unsheathing his sword. "This's gone on for too long," he said, smirk never leaving his face. The animal nodded, eyes narrowing as they flicked over to the window. There wasn't enough room to fight in here. He grinned and ran at Sky, claws shining. He faked a swipe to the right as he jumped to the left and out the window, claws leaving four deep gashes in the wooden frame. Sky cursed and ran out of the kitchen, but was stopped by Dawn.

"Is that really you, Sky?" she asked doubtfully, multicolored eyes swimming with uncertainty. Sky kissed her, pulling her into a short hug before running past her and out the main door of the tree. She turned to watch him go, knowing that he was here, and that he would finish what the animal started.

The animal swung through the branches, tentacles ripping through the fabric of his jacket so they could support his weight when he jumped from branch to branch. Sky was climbing the ladder that ran to the very top of the tree. Eventually, the two stopped at the very top.

The two doppelgängers glared at each other, one with a confident smirk and one with an annoyed scowl. The wind whistled and the leaves rustled with the wind's song, a quiet lullaby that tried to calm the two. They stood like that for a moment then charged at each other. Sky raised his butter sword, a war cry ripping from his lips. The animal clicked his claws and silently ran at his double.

Their weapons clashed together but were ripped apart soon after, only to meet again. The battle continued, both ducking and dodging each other's attacks as they waited for the other to finally give out.

Sky's smirk had faded as they fought. The animal, even though Sky didn't want to admit it, was a challenge. But the animal thought the same. They were evenly matched, no matter how many parries or slashes they sent at each other. But what both of them noticed was that the animal was slowly pushing Sky backwards, towards the edge of the tree. A cold drop of sweat ran down the back of Sky's neck, making him shiver. If the animal pushed him off the edge, he was done for. Nobody could survive a fall from hundreds of feet in the air.

Even with the looming threat of falling, Sky continued to give the battle all he had. His body ached for a moment of rest, but he pushed on anyway. He couldn't fail everyone. Not now, not ever. As he once again blocked a swipe, the animal leaned in close. "Sky, Sky… Haven't I told you that I'm a squid? You seem to forget that."

Before Sky's brain could fully register what was happening, a tentacle swung around and pushed him over the edge of the tree.

His chocolate-golden eyes widened, arms flailing through the air as he tumbled backwards. The animal smirked at Sky, skin deepening to a grey-blue. "Goodbye, Sky. Have a nice trip."

Sky scowled and turned, reaching forward and grabbing one of the animal's tentacles that was waving triumphantly in the air. "See you next fall!"

Then they were both tumbling down through the air.

**Flashback – Jordan**

"Mama," a young boy sniffled, "Mama, wakey wakey." The five-year-old sniffed again, futilely blinking back tears. "Please, Mama. Wakey up."

A hand touched his shoulder, and he flinched away. He turned to his father, pale eyes wide. His father had burned her, and now she wasn't waking up. The demon he called a dad turned away and started walking back to the glowing portal, throwing a careless insult at the boy's dead mother.

The boy sniffed and looked back at his mother. He knew his dad wanted him to follow, but he refused to leave his mother's side. He turned back to his mother. "Mama, please. Wakey wakey up…"

His father grabbed his wrist. "I told you to follow."

"Mama!" The boy screamed, struggling to get back to his mother's body. "Mama, no!" He felt something in his chest shatter as he was dragged away from her. All he wanted was her comfort. He didn't get why his father had made the flames sweep around his mother in a death dance. He remembered very clearly how she had _screamed. _Now all he wanted was her, alive, keeping the sobs that bubbled in his throat calm. "Mama, come back!" He sobbed, struggling against his dad as he was dragged into the portal.

"Come back…."


	13. 1 Day Un- 0 Days Until Destruction

**Song of the chapter: ****_Our Solemn Hour _****by Within Temptation**

**1 Day Until Destruction**

**Time: 10:52**

**Location: Jerome's Treehouse**

Sky watched as the animal twisted above him, trying to reach out and grab anything that would halt his fall. The animal turned and glared at Sky with pure hatred burning in those blue-grey eyes. "If this fall doesn't end you, Sky, I will kill you very slowly and painfully!"

Sky smiled.

And closed his eyes.

And counted down from ten.

He thought about his life, far back into his earlier, peaceful years, up until the entire fiasco with the animal, and then thought about now. If he were to die here and now, he wouldn't really mind. Sure, he knew that his friends would be devastated, but he knew that they could live on. He had lived a good life, there weren't many regrets for him to mull on.

_Ten_

He remembered when he first met Dawn, and how something had just… clicked when they saw each other. From then on, they couldn't truly be separated. Even if they were thousands of miles away, they still knew each other. They still loved each other.

_Nine_

Ty and Kermit had been his buddies. They were the first ones to try and snap him out of it when the animal first surfaced. It pained him that he would leave them without saying goodbye. It would probably hurt them even more. He wondered if there was some way of saying goodbye after he died.

_Eight_

And then the rest of Team Crafted. How would they react to his death? They would miss him, of course, but what feelings would they hide? What would they hold onto? Would Sky just fade away from their minds or would they remember him? For the first time in the fall, Sky felt a glimmer of fear. He didn't want to be forgotten.

_Seven_

Sky twirled in the air, now facing the ground. He watched the ground rush up to meet him and spread his arms, reaching out to the stars with his fingers. From this high up, he could almost touch them. Maybe he would be able to once he hit the ground. He smiled again and closed his eyes, embracing the cool wind whipping around him. He had always wanted to fly.

_Six_

He let a small sigh escape his lips as the animal screamed some more profanity at him. Without opening his eyes, called out "Shut up already. You might as well accept your fate, we're both dead anyway." The animal fell silent, blinking. He frowned and looked back down. "You know, this is all your fault."

_Five_

Sky shook his head and ignored the animal. Instead he thought of how his friends would survive without him. They couldn't just shake off his death very easily. (At least he hoped so) But they would get past it, right? They wouldn't linger too long in the past, he hoped. That wouldn't do any good for anybody.

_Four_

Sky curled his fingers, pretending that the wind was fine silk and strings slipping through his fingers. The air curled around him, almost as if it wanted to assure him that everything would be fine; everything would be alright. It was when he felt the air currents shift suddenly he became confused. He had learned a fair deal about the weather and the wind to know that right now, the winds shouldn't have suddenly been shifting like they were. Sky just shrugged and opened his eyes. A black feather floated down past his nose.

_Three_

The animal broke the silence with a scream. Sky glanced over at him to see something dark and feathery envelope the squid. Sky didn't have much time to think about what he had seen since the ground was already rushing up to meet him.

_Two_

The feathery thing moved away from the animal. Or rather, the dead body of the animal. Sky gasped at the pale grey body falling to the ground. The animal was dead? But how... He looked up and noticed a shape hovering above him. His chocolate-gold eyes met bright orange ones. They stared at him for a moment until Sky broke the gaze by glancing down. The ground was only a couple meters away when he felt hands clamp down on his shoulders, halting his fall and setting him on the ground gently.

_One_

"It isn't your time," a voice said just before Sky's world faded to black. He tried to fight against the sudden exhaustion, but it pressed in on him unnaturally. His eyes slipped close and he heard just two words before darkness took over.

"Not yet…"

**Time: 11:00**

Seto stumbled when they were brought back to the Overworld. For the first time in over a month, he took a breath of clean, crisp night air. When he looked around he wasn't jealous of the life that surrounded them. He didn't have much time to enjoy the feeling of being alive for long, though.

Jordan nudged him, gesturing to the large redwood tree a mile away. "Can you sense it?" he asked, voice low.

Seto paused then nodded; yes, he could sense the power surge nearing the tree. It was slightly muffled, he noticed. "Yes, but it's strange. Not like when I was a ghost. It must be because I'm a human now."

Jason coughed and pointed upwards. "Uh, guys? What's that?"

They looked above them and gasped. Five different colored streams were twining through the air, teaching out with groping fingers towards Jerome's Tree house. Red, blue, green, grey, and silver. Jordan glared up at the colors. "This is what happens when you let a demon have control of all the elements," he muttered darkly, eyebrows furrowing. He started to run. "We can still save your friends if we hurry. Come on!"

Seto kicked the ground and the dirt block underneath him floated up, then sped away with him on it. Jason shrugged off what was left of his spacesuit-minus his helmet-and jumped into the air, letting the currents carry him. Jerome grumbled something in annoyance and ran over to the nearest tree. He scrambled up it, making a vine grow. The bacca made his wobbling howl and swung to the next tree, then to the next and the one after.

The bacca watched, horrified, as the colors started to spiral together, speeding up towards the tree. He picked up the pace, passing Jason. The spaceman glanced at him, curling his fingers to make the wind live faster.

Seto watched the spiral of colors warily. He recognized magic when he saw it, and that was definitely magic. Elemental magic, but still. This was bad. He shoved out a hand and leaped off the dirt block. Several swirls of silver-purple formed around him, supporting his limbs so he could easily fly through the air. He picked up the pace, swooping down low to shout at Jordan. "Is that Herobrine?"

Jordan glanced up at the spirals and nodded grimly, jumping over a log in his path. "It's him, alright. He's heading towards your friends."

As he said this, his hands clenched into fists and lightning crackled. Seto glanced down at him, frowning, and then looked ahead of them. At this rate, Herobrine would get to the tree before them. "Can you teleport us?" Seto shouted above the wind, magic wavering slightly at the strong gales that washed around them as Jason neared.

Jordan looked up at him and nodded silently, digging his heels in and skidding to a stop. Jason and Seto landed nimbly and the three waited for Jerome to catch up. Jordan stuck an arm out. "Grab on," he said.

When they did, lightning shot down to meet the earth and the four disappeared.

**Location: Jerome's Treehouse**

Deadlox watched eyes wide, as his friend and the animal tumbled past the main level of the tree. This couldn't be happening...

"Sky!" Dawn cried out, running to the railing that surrounded the front porch. She leaned over, watching hopelessly as Sky fell through a cloud and disappeared from sight. "Sky..."

Deadlox came up behind her, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. She turned and started crying into his shirt, whispering Sky's name over and over again. Ty bowed his head and cried with her. The others did the same, all grieving over their friend.

Ryan glanced at Nick, then back out to the porch. They hadn't known Sky that well, but they still respected the butter loving hero. Yes... Hero was a proper title for Sky. The batman bowed his head in respect, closing his eyes and giving a shaky but sharp salute to the sky. Nick watched him, then looked out over the forest. Sky would be missed.

**Location: Base of Jerome's Treehouse**

Jordan held out a hand as they neared the base of the redwood tree. He silently pointed at a crumpled form lying next to a pond. The other three gasped and ran over to Sky. After a few tense moments, they sighed when his eyes fluttered open.

Jordan watched the skies, searching for the spiral that had suddenly disappeared. He narrowed his eyes at the clouds, wishing them away with a flick of his wrist. Without much hesitation, the clouds that promised rain floated away, heading towards the ocean to form a small hurricane.

Seto stepped away from Sky, not wanting the ex-infected to panic at the sight of him alive. He didn't want to go through that again. He looked up to watch the skies slowly clear. There wasn't any sign of the spiral, which was strange. He frowned and glanced back down at Sky, who looked like he had seen a ghost. Seto gave a slight wave at him. "Hey, Sky…"

"How are y-"

Fire started suddenly, springing up from the surrounding trees. In no time at all, it was a roaring forest fire. Icy shards pelted down on them, slicing their already torn clothes. The wind howled and raged around them, uprooting trees. Sky stood quickly, casting Seto a glance that said they'd talk later. The sorcerer nodded, summoning a few silver swirls to hoist him into the air. He could sense a spike of power up near the middle of the tree. He didn't have to look to know that a pair of blazing white eyes was glaring down at the five of them.

The group ducked and scattered as a bolt of lightning crackled down on them, bringing the demon down with it. Herobrine glared at them, eyes narrowed with hate. He glanced down to his left, where the limp body of the animal was sprawled out, broken, on the ground. He returned his glare to the five

Overworlders. He talked forward, unsheathing a diamond sword. "I am done with you idiotic mortals. I'll kill you myself!"

He flashed away and if it weren't for Jerome's quick reflexes, the bacca wouldn't have had a head anymore. And with a few more swipes and slashes, the battle commenced

**Time: 11:31**

Dawn watched the surprise ice storm with red puffy eyes. She couldn't believe Sky was gone. She wouldn't. There wasn't any way that he was dead. She didn't see him fall past the cloud line, that must have been an illusion. It couldn't have been him.

The others were quiet for once.

That was, until Seto was slammed through the wall. They jumped in surprise, watching the deceased sorcerer stand, wave, and jump back out the hole he had crashed through. "I'll explain later!"

Herobrine was growing bored of these humans. He made a few copies of himself spawn and they went to fight for him. He glanced up, where the others were filtering down the tree and into , perfect. He scowled and jumped into the winds, faltering slightly as he did so; he wasn't as used to the other elements as he was fire.

The demon growled and deflected a lightning bolt, courtesy of his son. He rolled out of the air, slashing a diamond blade at Sky, who ducked away in time to avoid having his head cut off. He'll kill this one, Herobrine decided. Without their leader, the others will falter and he could end them quickly. But as Sky took on the more defensive role in their fight, Herobrine knew that this would eventually get boring as well.

**Time: 11:53**

Seto made his way over to Jordan, slashing at the copies as he did so. They made a airy gasping noise and dispersed into dust as he hit them, only to form back together a few feet from their death point. It never ended, it seemed. When the sorcerer had reached Jordan, he called out above the sounds of fighting, "I think I may have a way to get rid of Him!"

Jordan curled a fist and shoved it towards the ground. The hail around them clumped together into a rock and fell onto a couple of clones, making them disperse. "Continue!"

Thunder crashed and lightning struck the ground.

"If we get Him back into the Nether," Seto shouted over the thunder, "I might be able to cast a spell and keep Him locked in there. I'll need your help, though."

Jordan' eyes narrowed as he took out Jerry's Sword, swiping the green blade through the air. "How much of my help?"

Seto was silent for a moment, blocking a wall of flame with a magic shield. "Remember before we went into the Nether? That kind of power is how much help I'll need."

Jordan cursed and stabbed his sword through a clone's chest. He turned and spat one word at the sorcerer. "No." Then he turned and continued fighting.

"It's the only way, Jordan! We can't continue on with this much longer! Look around, we're all exhausted!"

The demigod shook his head and fell silent, concentrating on the fight, and the fight alone. Nothing else mattered except staying alive and keeping the others safe. He wouldn't give Seto the help because he would lose control. Jordan didn't want to accidentally kill someone; he didn't want to lose himself and hurt them. But… what if he was able to keep control of himself? If he could, then this entire problem could be finally finished. It could be over.

It… it was a risk worth taking.

And as he took down another clone, he turned to Seto and nodded.

**Time: 11:59**

Sky swore and dodged another swipe from the diamond blade. His butter sword was gone-stolen away with a slash from the demon-and he had nothing to fight with anymore. He tried dodging as best as he could, but there were those little times that Herobrine got in a good cut on his arm or shoulder. He couldn't die, not here. Not now.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a purple and silver glow. He didn't focus on it too much until lightning bolts started striking around the glow. Then he glanced over, gasping at the sight before him. Swirls of glowing purple and silver spiraled up into the air, and lightning crackled across the sky towards the spiral. The wind picked up, creating a small tornado that started around the spiral. Water sprouted from the ground, creating thin lines that wrapped around the spiral; fire quickly followed. Vibrant leaves of different colors were swept up into the winds, cautiously dancing around the lines of flame.

And then the weather started going haywire, ruining the scene with jagged bolts of electricity and thunderous claps. Rain poured down in torrents, soaking the group quickly. The earth rumbled; rocks started shifting and moving like a living thing, crawling across the ground. It was Hell on Earth.

Jordan trembled, trying to keep in control of his rage. He couldn't let his friends down-not when they were this close. He could taste victory, just out of reach. But it was so, so close. So close. . . He started to space out, giving in to the anger that always came along with using this much power. He shook his head, squeazing his bright blank eyes shut in concentration. He couldn't lose focus now; that would mean certain death for the others. He ground his teeth together and focused on bringing the elements into the spire. If this worked, Seto owed him one.

Seto never glanced up from the ground, hands and wrists twitching in strange symbols as words of another language fell through his lips. _Almost done,_ he thought to himself, _just hold in there._ He could rest his tired body once this was all over with. Just a few more minutes.

For the first time since being resurrected, he ignored the thrumming of his heart. He could only concentrate on the spell and staying awake. But… The thought of closing his eyes sounded really, really good right now... No. He would stand strong. He wouldn't let his friends down again. Never again.

**Time: 12:01**

Herobrine felt a tug somewhere from deep inside him. At first, it was soft and subtle-nothing to worry about. But then it grew. And as he watched the sorcerer and his son, he realized what was happening: He was going to be sealed back into the Nether! The demon growled and flashed towards Jordan, diamond sword posed, ready to attack. He could feel the vortex slowly pull him away from this dimension, towards the hell he had always belonged to. No, no, no, no! He would not _fail_; he couldn't!

He swung the sword in an arch, blue metal gleaming in the light moon that peered out from behind the rainclouds.

The blade came into contact with Jordan.

The demigod he once called his son crumpled to the ground.

But it was already too late.

Jerome stared at the vortex of elements, feeling a rush of pride when the frail but brightly-colored leaves sprung up from the trees around them to join it. He flashed a grin at Husky, who was leaning up against a tree that had recently grown in the battle. The fi- mudkip, had tried his best to fight, despite his healing wounds. He had used the pond that was nearby to his full advantage, and now puddles of mud and liquid were scattered around the redwood tree. The others had used whatever weapons that they had on them. Jerome was pretty sure that he had seen Dawn pick up her boyfriend's sword after Sky had dropped it.

But now, the sheer power of the vortex was… indescribable. He could feel the pulse of magic and the elements. The bacca glanced around, gasping when he saw Herobrine run towards Jordan who was completely oblivious to anything other than what he was focusing on. He saw the blade go up, up, then down.

Even from where Jerome was, he could hear the cry that came from the demigod as the sword struck his head. The fluffy sprung into motion, hefting a vine in one hand and an axe that he had somehow obtained in the other. He charged, and so did the others, but the demon was already being swept up into the vortex. They could do nothing but stare as Herobrine was pulled into the vortex.

They watched, too transfixed to do much else, as the vortex slowly turned a deep amethyst. Purple sparks floated down across them, sweeping around the Overworlders like snowflakes on a winter day. And with a scream of vengeance that was half-muffled, the demon was sucked back into his world, forever trapped in the scorching heat.

Jerome glanced away to see Jordan's friends, Nick and Ryan, clustering around the demigod. They called his name, kneeling down next to the lifeless Jordan with tears welling up. This couldn't be happening, not after all they had gone through.

"Jordan. Oh Notch no, Jordan! Wake up, wake up." They whispered, both repeating the same phrases over and over again. Seto collapsed next to the demigod, grabbing his wrist and feeling for a pulse. His breath left him and he glanced up, eyes flicking over each and every one of his friends. They stared back at the sorcerer, anguish flooding through them when he gave a tiny, almost incomprehensible shake of his head.

_After all this-all this toil and trouble and pain,_ Seto thought. _After all the running and fighting and blood…_ This couldn't be happening. Jason was the first of Team Crafted to kneel down next to the other three. Then Jerome, then Husky, then Sky, and the rest followed. Seto couldn't bear to look at them; he couldn't bear to know that the same thing had happened a month and a half ago when he had died. The sorcerer let out a shaky sigh, blinking the tears out of his already-blurry vision.

He closed his eyes and listened. He listened to the wind running across the trees; he listened to the leaves rattle, some crackling as embers from the fire that was dying; he listened to the _plip plip plip _of the rain dropping into puddles; he listened to the breathing of his friends, to their heartbeats. And, amongst all these sounds, he was able to discern a small voice say, "You guys don't n-need to… cry me a river… I'm not dead yet…"

Seto opened his eyes wide and looked down at Jordan, who was slowly moving to sit up. The others gasped, some jumping back to their feet. But in a rush, they all leaped forward to hug the-alive-demigod. They talked over one another, and even though they were all exhausted, everyone was thrilled that they were all okay. They were all alive, and together.

Maybe everything would be alright.

Just maybe…

* * *

_Who sucks at fight scenes? ME! So yeah, I had basically tried every way, shape or form, to avoid a bunch of details about the fight. But you can get the gist of it, right? They fight a bunch of evil Herobrine clones while somehow surviving. :D So yeah, there'll be an epilogue up sooner or later, and then the end credits. So this is the second to last chapter. And I'll tell you what, my peopleses, I am so very, very joyed that you guys love it so much. I can't tell you how thrilled I am every time I see a new favorite, or a follow. I'm even more excited when I see a new review. _

_And don't even get me started on reviews. As of 10/14/13 this fic has 89 reviews. Just…. Oh my god, peopleses. I was only hoping for fifty, but I get close to one-hundred? Holy cow. So I'd like to thank everyone that has followed this through. And, well, goodbye! I'll be seeing you in the epilogue and end credits!_

_And can anybody guess who owns the bright orange eyes that saved Sky when he was falling? I'll tell you one thing: None of you will. But it's an opener for the next story._

_And yes, I'm very aware that this chapter is a bit rushed, but I started it only Saturday. And it was originally going to be two short chapters, but I couldn't make that work. And I have a feeling you guys like long chapters. So, yup. :)_

_And do you think we can hit **one-hundred** reviews?_

_-Cold_


	14. Epilouge

**2 Days After Battle**

**Time: 11:57**

**Location: Jerry's Tree**

Jordan sighed and closed the door to his room quietly. Music blared down by the base of the tree and colorful lights flashed. Sky had so blatantly said that, since everyone had survived, they needed to party.

Jordan wasn't really one for parties. He blinked slowly, rubbing an eye tiredly. He sat down on his bed, running his thumb over Gary, who was perched on his shoulder. Karry jumped up onto the bed next to him. He sighed and turned towards the chest next to him; best to get this over with.

Everyone knew his secret now. So he needed to disappear-and fast. He couldn't take anything, he needed to start anew. He opened the chest, taking out a piece of paper and a feather. An inks sack soon followed, and he punctured the sack with the tip of the feather. Sure, there were pencils, but he always like to write old-fashioned.

So, in careful cursive writing, he started to make his farewell letter.

_"To whom it may concern,_

_First of all, I'm sorry. I need you guys to know that I really, really am. And second, I need you guys to know that I don't want to be found. I'm leaving, and by the time you get this letter I'll be gone."_

Jordan sighed and dipped the feather in ink again. He started another paragraph.

_"I don't want you guys to worry about me. I'll be fine, it's just that... Well, all of this is my fault. If I hadn't dragged you guys into this, then none of it would have happened. I know that this seems unreasonable, but I can't help but blame myself."_

Another dip into the ink interrupted his explanation.

_"It's my fault that Herobrine was after you guys. To tell you the truth, I never really liked my father that much. Maybe it was because that he was cold, and all I was used to was the heat of flames. When I came to the Overworld, I promised myself not to make any friends. I promised myself that if I did, I would keep them safe from my 'father'."_

Jordan dipped the feather tip again, cursing softly when extra ink dripped onto part of the letter. He didn't bother to wipe it off.

_"Well, I failed myself in that promise, and you guys. And he tried to kill all of you... This is why I shouldn't make friends. I'm sorry...I truly am... But, I need to go. Maybe I'll see you guys again someday."_

With that, Jordan ended the letter. He stood, setting the feather and ink sack down on the bed. Gary poked them curiously. Karry _mrrowed,_ hopping down off the bed and rubbing against Jordan's legs. The demigod sighed and reached down, rubbing the cat's ears. "What am I going to do with you, cat? And what about you Gary? I guess..." He sighed and shook his head, folding the letter carefully and opening the door.

Seto was sitting on the railing, eyes tilted up to watch the clear, starry night sky. He turned around when he heard Jordan. "Took you long enough," he commented, lazily drawing out his words. "Thought you'd fallen asleep."

Jordan smirked slightly, walking over to the railing. He jumped up and sat down, back facing the drop. He stayed silent, eyes looking down at the ground. He didn't want to leave, but he had to. "Seto-"

"I want to thank you, Jordan," the sorcerer interrupted, craning his head around to look at the demigod. "I know that it was mainly Herobrine's fault, but you helped bring me back to life. I'm really grateful, you know? I'm glad I'm alive again.."

Jordan shook his head, drawing his knees around to face the drop, looking out at the stars. The two fell into a comfortable silence, both content to just listen and watch. Finally, Seto spoke.

"Wonderful stars out tonight. It's nights like these that make me happy to be alive... and to have someone who would help keep me alive."

Jordan smiled, crumbling the note up in his hand and dropping it over the edge of the railing, where it tumbled through the air and into the pond below. Seto slid off the railing, glancing down at the party. "Well I might as well go join them, are you coming?"

Jordan nodded, but didn't move. "In a minute."

Seto grinned at him and walked over to the stairs. When the sorcerer's cape had finally disappeared from sight, Jordan smiled and sighed, looking out at the clear night sky.

"Yes... It is a wonderful night, especially with people to share it with."

**Time: 2:46**

Later, as everyone dispersed to foot their own homes, Jordan lay awake on the top of the tree. Gary was snuggled up in his hair and Karry was curled on top of his chest, both fast asleep. The demigod himself was wide awake, white eyes glowing like the stars above him.

He was silent, content to simply lie there, watching and listening. He yawned, but his case of insomnia hadn't been cured. He laid there for hours, daydreaming of his past, the future, and the present. Silently and slowly, as the crickets and animals died down and the nightly mobs came out.

He listened to their groans and hissing. He smiled. Everything was normal in the world, everything was just fine. The stars above twinkled like diamonds splashed across a black canvas. The moon shone, bright even though it was only a crescent. He sighed and closed his eyes, listening to the melody of the leaves rattling off comforting whispers and frogs croaking their calls way down below. The wind whistled a quiet lullaby, wrapping around the demigod in a soft hug.

For once in a month, Jordan was able to sleep peacefully.

A man dressed in black stood on a branch, bright orange eyes never leaving Jerry's Tree. He smiled, flashing straight and white teeth. The man fiddled with a tie that nearly matched his eyes in color. He straightened his suit, ruffling it slightly to give it a more baggy appearance.

The man looked out over the night, setting a pair of headphones on his head. Dark sunglasses were soon sitting on his Jose, covering his unearthly-colored eyes. The man gave his trademark smirk and jumped out of the tree he was in.

He unfolded inky black wings and swung out of his dive, leveling out and flying into the sky that he had came from.


	15. Credits

**Disclaimer: I do not own CaptainSparkles (Jordan), SkyDoesMinecraft (Sky), Setosorcerer (Seto), TrueMU (Jason), ASFJerome (Jerome), Huskymudkipz (Husky/Quentin), and the rest of Team Crafted. They are their own person, and it would be just plain weird if I owned them. I don't own Minecraft, either. Mojang does, not me. Not me. I wish I did, though. But I don't.**

**But I do own this story, but not the idea. I don't know who came up with the whole "Herobrine's Son" idea, but it's not me. I'm just a sad little author who gave in to the peer pressure of writing a sequel. (Courtesy of a few irl friends of mine.)**

_So, now that I've got that over with, I need to get another thing off my chest. . ._

_THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH, I LOVE YOU ALL. I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU, I LOVE YOU! You guys would not believe how __**amazed **__I am at how much support that you peopleses gave. I'm speechless, really. 100 reviews? FANTASTIC! Seriously, guys, you're the people who kept this fic going. Without your support, this would've died a long, long time ago. So, if any of you notice the longish period between the last few chapters I've posted, I want to explain a bit. I was going through one point where it was just so, so hard to write. I had to force myself to sit down and type for at least an hour each day. Even then, I thought that something was missing so I deleted what I'd wrote down. So I hope you guys didn't mind too much-I'm still kind of going through this still. But you peoples, you are the ones that helped the chapters' posting._

_Thank you._

And now, if you don't want to read useless facts about this fic, you can just skip ahead until my words aren't underlined. Here's the story's bio:

Title: Insomnia

Chapters: 15 (Including credits)

Word Count: 29,846

Review Count: As of 10-15-13 = 101 reviews

Favorite Count: As of 10-15-13 = 26 Favorites

Follow Count: As of 10-15-13 = 28 Follows

View Count: As of 10-15-13 = 4,047 views

**Story Facts:**

_**Insomnia was originally going to have three character deaths. Jordan, Sky, and the animal.**_

_**It was originally going to be ten chapters, but it got out of hand.**_

_**Like every story, there's always an alternate ending. If you wish to view this, PM me. Maybe, if I'm nice, I'll post it.**_

_**Most of Insomnia was written on my phone, in-between classes.**_

_**I actually had a "small" case of insomnia when this was being made. Once I stayed up until 3 writing this.**_

_**It will have a sequel, and none of you have guessed whom is featured.**_

_**Gordy was originally going to be in here, but I couldn't fit him in anywhere.**_

_**I am hesitantly very proud of it. And I've decided that instead of focusing on regular vanilla minecraft fics, I'm going to be writing more Team Crafted fanfictions.**_

_**This wasn't originally going to be a sequel. It was going to be another story entirely.**_

So yeah, none of you have guessed who the "man" is. I'm not sure if I should just tell you, since I haven't written a preview for the next story, which will be titled _Fallen. _I'm going to have a poll up, asking which youtubers should be featured. I'll choose the top five or six, and include them into the story. The poll will be up relatively shortly.

And once again, guys, I really want to thank you peopleses. You're all completely awesome. I'll see you again soon, peepses! And just remember, save the koalas!


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